International

Innovation, research and development aimed at finding tomorrow’s cures are a global concern, so PhRMA is engaged on an international scale. We work to ensure that the cures our member companies develop reach patients wherever they may be, and we inform policymakers and stakeholders of the policies that can improve patient access. We also strive to underscore the daily work of our member companies to improve the health and lives of individuals around the globe.

Over the last decade, biopharmaceutical research companies have provided more than $9.2 billion in direct assistance to health care in Africa, Asia and Latin America. This includes donations of medicines, vaccines, diagnostics and equipment, as well as other material and labor. The biopharmaceutical industry also is among the largest funders of the research and development necessary to cure neglected and major diseases in the developing world, investing more than $365 million into new cures and treatments in 2008 alone.

The global issues of concern to the industry include:

• Appropriate pricing and reimbursement of medicines;
• Access to medicines for all patients;
• Safe medicines for those patients;
• And intellectual property protection for the biopharmaceutical research companies that invest in developing those medicines. IP protection includes enforcement of laws and negotiations in free-trade agreements.

As the hurdles to innovation and access multiply globally, PhRMA will work with existing partners and seek new ones to ensure that patients can access the latest innovative therapies.

Resources

New Study on HTA Processes Highlights Areas for Improvement to Accelerate Patients’ Access to Innovative Medicines

Non-Communicable Diseases
The research-based pharmaceutical industry has released the first in a series on background papers that look at the global burden of non-communicable diseases (NCDs). Some of the papers examine the costs of NCDs both to national health systems and to the workplace, while others look at approaches to preventing and managing NCDs and also highlight some of the innovations that are currently in the pipeline to address non-communicable diseases.

Global Health Progress
This initiative seeks to bring research-based biopharmaceutical companies and global health leaders together to improve access to medicine and health care in the developing world. The coalition engages with global health organizations, lends advocacy support to shared goals, identifies best practices, and facilitates efforts to fight neglected diseases.

Partnership for Safe Medicines
Counterfeit and contraband drugs are a serious patient safety problem, and this partnership aims to protect consumers from the threats. Among other initiatives, the partnership documents key incidents of counterfeit drugs into an encyclopedia. PhRMA is one of the partners.

Special 301 Submission 2012
The 2012 PhRMA 301 submission was filed February 10. The submission outlines where PhRMA believes that many countries have significantly failed to meet their obligations to provide effective intellectual property protection for biopharmaceutical products.

National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (2010)
This annual report by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative surveys significant foreign barriers to U.S. exports. The key barriers noted in 2010 that affect the biopharmaceutical industry included: inadequate intellectual property protection in China; marketing approval requirements in Indonesia that force foreign companies to manufacture products there; and unfair commercial use of undisclosed test or other data.

PhRMA statement to Ways and Means on President Obama's Trade Agenda (February 2011).
This statement was submitted on February 18, 2011 to the House Ways and Means Committee regarding President Obama's trade policy agenda. In this statement, we focus on the contributions of the research-based biopharmaceutical industry to the U.S. economy and to U.S. exports, as well as the importance of enhancing the global competitiveness of our industry through negotiating and enforcing strong trade agreements containing high-standard, market-opening commitments and intellectual property rights (IPR) protections.