The proposed Patent or IP waiver for the COVID-19 Vaccines appears to be a closer reality now. The Biden Administration in the US is convinced that waiving off the IP restrictions for Coronavirus vaccines is a fair thing to do. The European Union may also incline to this narrative which is to be confirmed in the coming days or weeks. The relevance of the Pharmaceutical Patents has always been a contentious issue. But, the WTO’s 1995 Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights has been in effect, no matter how the debate evolved. Now that the IP waiver is likely to become a reality in the context of a deadly pandemic, there will always be questions raised about its real impact and relevance for the future.
Should there be any compromise on the Pharmaceutical Patents?
Patent rights and intellectual property protection are essential to ensure the prevention of misuse when it comes to trade practices. The IP owners must be the absolute owners of information, formulations and technology. It is only fair and basic decency. The innovators can confidently invest in the further research and development of the final products or solutions when their IPs rights are secured and protected. There can’t be any argument in favour of compromising or diluting the patent rights. What about the Coronavirus pandemic? It is a general view that a situation like COVID-19 pandemic can be and should be treated as an exceptional case. But, the question remains if it will set a bad precedence in the direction of diluting patent protection programs. What happens when the HIV Vaccine is introduced in the near future? Will the popular opinion be to go the same way of patent waivers or allow the innovators to retain their Intellectual Property rights and indulge in seamless capacity building for the future? These questions are worth pondering without trying to be politically correct..
Response of the COVID-19 Vaccine innovators
Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca and Janssen are the four major players in the COVID-19 Vaccines market. Pfizer and Moderna Vaccines are mRNA based and are considered to be highly effective. None of the major Vaccine innovators will be happy about patent waivers in any form. Instead they will be open to look at ways and means of enhancing manufacturing capabilities and increase the vaccine production. If the objective is to help improving the access, it can be done in many other ways without compromising the patents and the integrity of intellectual property agreements.
Even if the IP or Patent Waiver is applicable for any of these vaccines that are being developed in world class research facilities, it is not an easy process to replicate the same quality of vaccine development without understanding the technology behind the development and production. Unless the innovator company is committed to help their prospective counterparts with technology transfers and scalability, the whole exercise of IP waiver remains unproductive. It is only wise for the innovators and companies with production capabilities to come together with a viable and scalable production plan that is agreeable to all parties concerned.
