The need for HIV patent pools is urgent
Unitaid welcomes GlaxoSmithKline's renewed interest in the Unitaid patent pool initiative for HIV/Aids medicines and its openness to taking a flexible approach to managing intellectual property (Letters, 10 September); and GlaxoSmithKline urged to pool its patents on HIV drugs, 7 September). Wherever multiple patents owned by different companies are required to make a product, patent pools may offer a useful solution. Pills that combine three medicines into one tablet to treat HIV/Aids are a good example of such products. The World Health Organisation recommends the use of such pills because they make it easier for patients to take their treatment and reduces the risk that viral resistance will render the drugs useless. However, patents from two to three different companies are usually required, meaning that single-company initiatives will...
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