GDP Center launches Trade and Medicines Working Group to make sense of COVID era

As governments struggle to make their health care systems more resilient in the COVID-19, Boston University’s Global Development Policy Center has established an expert “Working Group on Trade and Access to Medicines.” The aim of the group is to generate evidence-based policy research that helps policy-makers align the trade and investment treaty regime with universal access to essential medicines and health care. The group consists of experts from across the globe that are actively conducting research on international trade and investment treaties and access to medicines and health care. The group includes experts from Africa, Asia, Europe, and the United States. The group has a dedicated webpage that has the most up-to-date developments from the project.

Access the Working Group webpage to see new work on the COVID-19 virus and patents by working group members Yousuf Vawda and Brook Baker, a new book on Trade Agreements and Public Health by Deborah Gleeson, the Working Group’s first collective report “Rethinking Trade Treaties and Access to Medicines,’ and new research by the GDP Center team estimating the impact of LDC ‘graduation’ on insulin prices and poverty in Bangladesh. The Working Group has a call for papers for a special issue of the Journal of Globalization and Development on these topics.

To access the Working Group’s reports, academic articles, and commentaries see:

Rethinking Trade Treaties & Access to Medicines: Toward a Policy-Oriented Research Agenda

By Working Group on Trade, Investment Treaties & Access Medicines.

The Social Costs of Graduating from Least Developed Country Status: Analyzing the impact of increased protection on insulin prices in Bangladesh

By Deen Islam

COVID-19: The time for procrastination over patents is over

By Yousuf Vawda and Brook K. Baker

Trade Agreements and Public Health: A Primer for Health Policy Makers, Researchers and Advocates

By Deborah Gleeson and Ronald Labonté

The Effects of Trade Agreements on Imports of Biologics: Evidence from Chile

By Danielle Trachtenberg, Warren A. Kaplan, Veronika J. Wirtz & Kevin P. Gallagher

And also do not forget about our call for papers!