Backlash Against TPP Grows as Leaked Text Reveals Increased Corporate Control of Public Health
As the Obama administration praises the benefits of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), backlash continues to grow against the deal. WikiLeaks has just published another section of the secret text — this one about public healthcare and the pharmaceutical industry. Newly revealed details of the draft show the TPP would give major pharmaceutical companies more power over public access to medicine, and weaken public healthcare programs. The leaked draft also suggests the TPP would prevent Congress from passing reforms to lower drug costs. One of the practices that would be allowed is known as "Evergreening." It lets drug companies extend the life of a patent by slightly modifying their product and then getting a new patent. We speak to Peter Maybarduk of Public Citizen and John Sifton of Human Rights Watch about their concerns.
NERMEEN SHAIKH: Welcome to all our listeners and viewers around the country and around the world. House Republicans are set to push for a vote as soon as Friday on approving a measure to give President Obama fast-track authority to negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal. The secretive TPP deal involves 12 countries and nearly 40 percent of the global economy. On Wednesday, WikiLeaks released a leaked draft of another chapter of the secret negotiating text. This time the TPP’s so-called "Healthcare Annex." Newly revealed details of the draft show the TPP would give major pharmaceutical companies more power over public access to medicine, and weaken public healthcare programs. The leaked draft also suggests the TPP would prevent Congress from passing reforms to lower drug costs. One of the practices that would be allowed is known as "evergreening." It lets drug companies extend the life of a patent by slightly modifying their product and then getting a new patent. This is a video explaining the practice, produced by Doctors Without Borders.
PRESENTER: Evergreening. It sounds nice, doesn’t it? But evergreening is what drug companies do when they want to increase their profits. And it leads people in developing countries without the medicines they need. Here is how. A drug company develops a new drug and is rewarded with a patent. The patent stops other producers making the medicine for 20 years. So the drug company can charge very high prices without anyone else undercutting them, for 20 years. When the patent ends, other producers can come in and compete with each other, and bingo, the prices come tumbling down. So the medicines become affordable for everyone. But the drug companies want more profits, so they make a tiny little change to their drugs and ask for another 20 year patent.
AMY GOODMAN: Well, for more, we’re joined by two guests in Washington, D.C. Peter Maybarduk is Director of Public Citizen’s Global Access to Medicines Program. And John Sifton is an advocacy director with Human Rights Watch. Today he is hosting a briefing at the National Press Club on the Human Rights and Humanitarian Concerns about the Trans-Pacific Partnership, along with Oxfam America and the Council on Global Equality. We welcome you both to Democracy Now! Peter, let’s begin with you on this issue of drugs. Talk about the TPP, and for those who have never heard of it, explain its significance and, particularly, as it relates to global access to drugs.
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http://www.democracynow.org/2015/6/11/backlash_against_tpp_grows_as_leaked
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BUT, this coming Tuesday that have the opportunity to try this gambit again with the drunk (Boehner) standing in the well basically asking for a re-vote.
And all of the staff corporate lobbyists standing behind these jerks were cheering when the other two measures passed------------they truly are not for the America and the citizens of this country they truly are not
Ryan is a puke, jerk, and whatever I can think of and not grace these pages with------------ plain and simple--------------, the only thing he sees in this "deal" which was passed by the senate was the $700 million per year in Medicare cuts to be the off set the job losses ( if this was such a good deal why job losses ---------why?) ------which will occur if this this "deal" passes, with more than $4.2 TRILLION being taken out of the fund over (6) years see below:
http://kff.org/medicare/fact-sheet/medicare-spending-and-financing-fact-sheet/
This is a big hit, to those that depend on this health care.
And if this passes these same right wingers and DINO's will come back and say:
"See the government can't operate this program properly so privatize it----------well yeah when you just gutted the program and took Pete's money to pay Paul---when it was funded.
The public is not stupid
They just voted 217 AND PASSED with agreements to hypocritically GRANT TAA to Fast Track and they worked out a deal for Medicare (going after those that don't file tax returns----------really how about for example Wells Fargo and Caterpillar that paid nothing in taxes)and they still have the Senate version in there for Medicare to gut $700 million a year $4.2 Trillion over six years
Welcome to the newest country to go to third world status
You can call until you blue in the face and they, in my opinion are going to pass this "deal" they just don't care
