Pharmaceuticals and the world of IP

The impact of pharmaceutical patents on access to medicines in developing countries has a few times been cover in this blog as well as in many other blogs around our world of IP and of course other disciplines such as those involve in the pharmaceutical industries (the other side of the spectrum) and those that are truly more affected – the public (the middle part?).

Brazil and India are some of the countries that produce a substantial amount of generic drugs and have been involved in a few cases regarding parallel import and seizure of generic medicines. Another issue that we have seen is Brazil and India joining the TRIPs Agreement and thus, in need of changing their IP regulatory frameworks. Indeed, we have noted the ongoing debate of the impact of these on access to medicines in developing countries.

For this reason, I announce with pleasure the publication of the book

Intellectual Property, Pharmaceuticals And Public Health

Access to Drugs in Developing Countries

While I wait for this book to arrive in my pigeon hole I can anticipate a hit in different disciplines – the publisher Edward Elgar Publishing mentions that the book “analyzes national strategies to promote pharmaceutical innovation, while at the same time assuring widespread access to medicines through generic pharmaceutical production and generic pharmaceutical importation”. The book contains 12 Chapters written by authors from different countries- covering national experiences. Four of the Chapters cover Latin American jurisdictions and you do not need to guess to know that Brazil is there.

The book is on sale in the UK and sooner than later in the US. Thanks need to go to Dr Kenneth C. Shadlen, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK, one of the editors of the book for making the blog aware of this publication.