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Two bills now before Parliament would address serious problems with 2004 legislation intended to make cheaper generic drugs available to countries fighting AIDS, malaria and other epidemics.
Ottawa (6 Oct. 2009) - A Liberal senator and a New Democratic Party MP are seeking all-party support for legislation to implement Canada's pledge to deliver cheaply-priced drugs to countries fighting AIDS, malaria and other epidemics.
Liberal Senator Sharon Carstairs and NDP MP Judy Wasylycia-Leis have each introduced bills to amend Canada's Access to Medicines Regime (CAMR) – a dysfunctional system that has produced results only once in five years.
Carstairs' bill, S-232, is about to be studied by a Senate committee. Wasylycia-Leis's bill, C-393, is expected to be debated in the Commons sometime in October.
The two parliamentarians say the challenge is a humanitarian issue that cuts across party lines.
The original bill was initiated by former prime minister Jean Chrétien and approved with all-party support in 2004. The legislaton won praise internationally. However, only Rwanda has benefited from the law in its five years of operation and critics say steps are urgently needed to make it more effective.
Apotex Inc., the Canadian generic drug manufacturer responsible for the shipment of drugs to Rwanda, says it found the process was so difficult it will not initiate any further shipments until more streamlined procedures are put in place.
Both of the new bills would simplify the legislation by permitting "one license solution." This would eliminate requirements for separate negotiations with patent holding drug companies for each purchasing country and each medication order.
So far the Harper government has shown no interest in amending the existing law. However, Carstairs and Wasylycia-Leis hope this will change as their two bills move through Parliament.
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