FRIDAY, April 16, 2021 (HealthDay News) — The United States should support efforts to temporarily waive intellectual property rules so that nations struggling to vaccinate their populations against COVID-19 can get more vaccines, 10 senators urged in a letter to President Joe Biden.
They wrote that the White House should “prioritize people over pharmaceutical company profits” and that a waiver could open the door for generic or other manufacturers to make more vaccines, the Associated Press reported.
India and South Africa have appealed to the World Health Organization for such a waiver, which is supported by more than 100 nations. “Simply put, we must make vaccines, testing, and treatments accessible everywhere if we are going to crush the virus anywhere,” the lawmakers say in the letter, the AP reported.
Drug companies and other opponents claim such a waiver would set a dangerous precedent in allowing scientists worldwide to copy American and European companies’ research.
The Biden administration has said it is studying the matter and did not respond to the AP‘s request for comment on the senators’ letter.
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