Tag: WTO
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US support for waiving COVID vaccine intellectual property is a huge step. Australia must follow
Deborah Gleeson, La Trobe University Yesterday, the US Biden administration declared its support for waiving intellectual property rights, including patents, for COVID-19 vaccines. This decision represents a huge breakthrough in discussions at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) that have been deadlocked for more than six months. Shortly afterwards, New Zealand’s…
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Covid-19 Vaccines: Ethics and Who is “Us”
Terry Slevin A pandemic is not a competition between companies, but a race between humanity and a virus. (Nature editorial, 30 March 2021) The Covid-19 vaccination program is the dominant health and political news story of the last few months. It is also becoming an ethical discussion of the difference…
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More talk, no action: Australia’s approach to trade rules restraining vaccine production
Deborah Gleeson, La Trobe University Papua New Guinea’s COVID-19 outbreak is a portent of the “catastrophic moral failure” the head of the World Health Organization warned of in January due to poor countries being pushed to the back of the vaccine queue. Australia has gifted 8,000 doses to PNG, and…
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Yes, export bans on vaccines are a problem, but why is the supply of vaccines so limited in the first place?
Deborah Gleeson, La Trobe University News of the blockage of a shipment of 250,000 COVID-19 vaccines from Europe to Australia has caused concern and outrage. The immediate problem will probably be quickly solved through diplomatic channels. Even if it is not, onshore manufacturing of the AstraZeneca vaccine will soon make…