FREE-TRADE AGREEMENTS

FREE-TRADE AGREEMENTS
October 23, 2015

Free trade agreements that include intellectual property provisions have been criticized for having the potential — particularly in developing countries — to raise the prices of medicines and undermine access to them. In 1995, the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) set the standards for intellectual property protection for member states of the World Trade Organization. In 2001, the Doha Declaration on the Trips Agreement reaffirmed flexibility of TRIPS member states to “protect public health and, in particular, to promote access to medicines for all.”