Letter sent to First Minister calling for block on profiteering from pandemic

More than twenty organisations have signed an open letter to Nicola Sturgeon calling on the Scottish government to use its powers to override any patents put on new medicines and vaccines for Covid-19 in order to block pharmaceutical companies from profiteering from the pandemic.

Last week, the UK government hosted a summit to raise funds for the global response to Covid-19.

The UK government alone has contributed £544 million towards research aimed at developing new vaccines and other treatments for Covid-19, and other governments have also contributed.

Campaign organisation Global Justice Now are warning that pharmaceutical companies could buy up research and patent new discoveries developed using public money, which could then make them unaffordable to the NHS.

In order to block this a group of social justice organisations, public health groups and trade unions including the Poverty Alliance, and the STUC have written an open letter to the First Minister calling on her to use special licensing powers to side-step any patents that might stop coronavirus treatments and vaccine being affordable to the NHS.

Jane Herbstritt from Global Justice Now said: “In Scotland, and around the world, scientists are racing to develop a vaccine and treatments as part of a global response to the coronavirus pandemic.

“We are calling for patentfree tests, treatments and vaccines that are available and affordable to everyone, anywhere in the world.

“However, pharmaceutical companies could make huge profits through the use of patents – and if they choose this route then it’s vital that governments step in and stop it.

“The Scottish government has the powers to do that here in Scotland, through the use of special licensing laws.”