INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY:
TRIPS AND PUBLIC HEALTH
Members accepting amendment of the TRIPS
Agreement
WTO
members on 6 December 2005 approved
changes to the WTO’s intellectual property (TRIPS) agreement making
permanent a decision on patents and public health originally adopted in
2003. This will now be formally built into the TRIPS Agreement when two
thirds of the WTO’s members have accepted the change.
They originally set themselves until 1 December 2007 to do this. The General Council extended the deadline to 31 December 2009, 31 December 2011 and then to 31 December 2013 by decisions on 18 December 2007, 17 December 2009 and 30 November 2011.
Once
two thirds of members have formally accepted it, the amendment will take
effect in those members and will replace the
2003 waiver for them. For each of the remaining members: the waiver
will continue to apply until that member accepts the amendment and it
takes effect. |
