APIRADEE TREERUTKUARKUL & THANIDA TANSUBHAPOL

Bilateral trade talks between Thailand and the United States could hamper public access to essential drugs, the opposition Democrat party warns. Buranaj Smutharaks, deputy health minister of the opposition's shadow cabinet, yesterday met Public Health Minister Chavarat Charnveerakul, to voice concerns over the possible negative impact of Thai-US trade negotiations on public access to life-saving medicines.

The meeting came a day after US President George W. Bush's visit to Thailand when he expressed an intention to resume free trade area (FTA) agreement negotiations with Asian countries, including Thailand.

''The government should have a firm stance on safeguarding public rights to affordable life-saving medicines via the compulsory licensing (CL) policy before continuing the talks with the US. Anything beyond the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (Trips) should not be accepted,'' Mr Buranaj said.

''However, the government still has no clear policy on CL although it's lawful and fully within the Trips framework,'' he added.

But Commerce Minister Chaiya Sasomsab said after taking up the post earlier this week that he was against the CL policy, saying it would obstruct trade policies while Mr Chavarat has said he would not push the measure.

Mr Chaiya has opposed the CL policy since he was public health minister.

The shadow deputy health minister also urged the health minister to discuss with the cabinet the issue of high drug prices because it also involved the Commerce Ministry.

Meanwhile, the Rural Doctors Society has called on the Public Health Ministry to speed up the purchase of seven drugs _ the patents for which had been bypassed _ to be used by patients under the universal healthcare scheme.

So far, only the Aids drugs effavirenz and aluvia have been imported for patients under the universal healthcare scheme after the government announced the CL policy to break Aids, cancer and heart drug patents in 2007.

The leukaemia drug imatinib is being given to patients under the programme for free as part of cooperation between the government and patent owner.

The director-general of the Department of American and South Pacific Affairs Nongnuch Phetcharat yesterday said the Thai and US governments had yet to discuss resuming the Thai-US FTA talks, currently suspended.

She said it was still unknown when the talks would resume.

By The Nation On 9 Aug 2008

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