US lobbied against the cheaper medicines bill

Akbayan Rep. Risa Hontiveros revealed today that the US Trade Representative actively lobbied against the Cheaper Medicines bill, condemning in the strongest terms the intervention of the US in a purely sovereign affair. "They ought to be reminded that the Philippines is not a colony of the US," Rep. Hontiveros said.

She said that the United States, in a position paper circulated to the members of the Committee on Trade and Industry, warned that the Philippines would be going against the trend in US free trade agreements with other countries if the bill is approved.
 
"We obtained a copy of a position paper that was reportedly circulated to the members of the Committee on Trade and Industry. Predictably, the Office of the US Trade Representative echoed the position of multinational pharmaceutical companies. They don't want a stricter definition of patentability to protect the monopoly of big pharmaceutical companies," Rep. Hontiveros said. "They also want to limit the government use of compulsory licensing."
 
She also slammed the warning that the bill is contrary to the interests of the US in its FTAs with other countries. "This is a clear connivance between multinational pharmaceutical companies and the US government. They are using the US-RP FTA, which is still being negotiated under the US-RP bilateral Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA), as their trump card," Rep. Hontiveros revealed.
 
She expressed relief that Congress stood its ground and retained the provisions amending the IPC amendments. "So far, the IP Code amendments, the clear target of the pharmaceutical companies, are intact in the version approved on 2nd Reading," Rep. Hontiveros said.
 
However, she cautioned that there is still a possibility that the killer amendments would be resurrected during the bi-cameral conference meeting. "They could be re-introduced again during the bi-cameral conference meeting. We should therefore be vigilant, since the pharmas could deliver a Trojan horse to the bi-cameral conference meeting," Rep. Hontiveros warned.