This Wednesday 21 May 2014, Knowledge Ecology International (KEI), Civil Society Coalition, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF), Oxfam, Health Action International (HAI) and Treatment Action Group (TAG) will host a side event at the WHA on, “Innovation and Access to Medicines and Vaccines: Emerging Challenges and Opportunities for Middle-Income Countries.”
At the opening of the 67th World Health Assembly, today the Young Professionals Chronic Disease Network (YP-CDN), Knowledge Ecology International (KEI), and Universities Allied for Essential Medicines (UAEM) released a briefing, “Cancer medicines are essential in reducing the global burden of non-communicable diseases.”
Comments of KEI, regarding USTR Request For Comments From The Public On The Creation Of The Public Interest Trade Advisory Committee And Request For Nominees To That Committee.
Submitted to Regulations.gov on March 25, 2014, under docket number USTR-2014-0005.
Intellectual property issues are an important element of US trade agreements, and according to a recent study by Open Secrets, the most intensively lobbied issue, by far.
The US Copyright Office held a two day roundtable event on the topic, “Orphan Works and Mass Digitization.” The two days were split into ten sessions, with extensive panels convened for each roundtable discussion. The meetings were held in the Montpelier Room at the Madison building of the Library of Congress, with the exception of the afternoon panels on the second day, which was held downstairs in the hearing room of the Copyright Office. Continue Reading
Among the comments that KEI filed today in the 2014 Special 301 Review process were comments regarding pharmaceutical companies’ donation and patient assistance programs. An oft-cited claim by pharmaceutical companies and those lobbying on their behalf is that donations and patient assistance programs fully provide for those that cannot afford the high priced medications offered by the companies. Continue Reading
On January 21, 2014, Ketaki Gokhale of Bloomberg published a story in Businessweek on disputes over drug patents. The story closed with a rather sinister quote attributed to Bayer CEO Marijn Dekkers, “We did not develop this medicine for Indians. Continue Reading
Next week, the United States International Trade Commission (ITC) will hold a two-day hearing on “Trade, Investment, and Industrial Policies in India: Effects on the US Economy.” The first session will take place Wednesday, February 12, 2014 at 1:00pm and the second session will convene on Thursday, February 13, 2014 at 9:30am. Both sessions will be held at the ITC in the Main Hearing Room (room 101) at 500 E Street SW, Washington, DC.
Seven out of eight persons want the NIH to use its rights in federally funded patents to prevent U.S. consumers from paying more than other high income countries, according to a survey of 170 randomly selected U.S. residents. The survey was conducted August 26 to August 28, 2013, and involved two questions regarding NIH funded drug development.
Question 1.
Today the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) announced KEI Director James Love as one of four distinguished winners of the 2013 Pioneer Awards. The annual award recognizes the leaders who are extending freedom and innovation on the electronic frontier. In addition to Love, this year’s fellow honorees are Aaron Swartz, the late digital rights activist, and Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras, the journalists that broke the Edward Snowden/NSA stories.