Permanent Mission of India 

Geneva 

Intervention by India on Agenda Item 8.5 – UN SG’s HLP Report on Access to Medicines at the 140^th Session of Executive Board of the WHO delivered by Shri. Amal Pusp, Director, Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on 27 January 2017

Mr. Chairman, we had earlier made our intervention on this subject when the provisional agenda item 2 was taken up. In addition to that, we have the following comments to make: 

Mr. Chairman, 

At the cost of repetition, delegation of India would like to request WHO to adequately respond to the UN Secretary General’s High Level Panel report on access to medicines, since the report is directly relevant to the GSPOA and the follow up to the CEWG. 

Some of the UNHLP recommendations merit immediate consideration, such as utilizing public health-sensitive Intellectual Property Rights. For example, countries making full use of TRIPS flexibilities, using licensing agreements that ensure public health returns for publicly-funded research (e.g. non-exclusive licensing, donation of IPR, data sharing, etc)., Creating new incentives for R&D, beyond patent monopolies, coordinating and sustainably financing R&D through innovative models, de-linking the costs of R&D from the price of medicines, Negotiating a binding R&D Convention or Agreement, based on de-linkage and other principles promoting public health, Ensuring transparency, accountability and governance in the R&D process. 

Some other recommendations which also merit immediate consideration are that : Governments should require manufacturers and distributors of health technologies to disclose to drug regulatory and procurement authorities information pertaining to : (1) the costs of R&D, production, marketing and distribution of health technology being procured or given marketing approval with each expense category separated; and (2) any public funding received in the development of the health technology including tax credits, subsidies and grants.

The UNHLP report recommends inter alia that building on the current discussions at the WHO the UN Secretary-General should initiate a process for governments to negotiate global agreements on the coordination, financing and development of health technologies, including a binding R&D convention that delinks costs of R&D from end prices to promote access to good health for all. 

We would like to emphasize that without comprehensively addressing the issue of access to medicines and vaccines guided by the principles of affordability and equity, we would not be able to achieve the SDGs and UHC goals. The UNHLP report can be a very useful instrument to do that. India would like to propose, therefore, that the EB should recommend to the 70^th World Health Assembly to convene an open-ended meeting of Member States to discuss the recommendations of the UNHLP and other relevant recommendations in the report of the CEWG. We would also urge the EB to ask WHO to undertake a web based consultation with Member States, before the 70^th World Health Assembly, on the UNHLP report and its recommendations. 

We would also request EB to consider including this item as a separate agenda item for the 70^th World Health Assembly.

Thank you.