Belinda Townsend
Time for costly medicine monopolies to go from TPP trade talks
Negotiators from 11 countries have been racing to resurrect the near-dead Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement before the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit this weekend. Dr Townsend discusses potential changes in the pipeline for rules affecting biologic drugs, an expensive class of medicines often used to treat conditions such as cancer and rheumatoid arthritis.
As deindustrialisation gathers pace, what does this mean for the health of local communities?
Many communities globally are facing considerable changes to employment conditions as economies lose their traditional manufacturing base and attempt to transition to an economy based on advanced manufacturing and knowledge based industries.
Is India holding the line against another TPP?
Of the RCEP negotiating countries, it is India, rather than China, that has been the most outspoken in opposing US-style trade rules.
