After the 71st World Health Assembly (WHA), the World Health Organization (WHO) Secretariat agreed to work on two measures for the next few years. The first one is to elaborate a road map report outlining the programming of WHO’s work on access to medicines and vaccines for the period 2019 – 2023, while the second one is to move forward to implement the recommendations consistent with the global strategy and plan of action on public health, innovation and intellectual property.

The draft outlining the medicines and vaccines for the next five years will be submitted to vote at World Assembly next year, after being passed by the Executive Board, January 2019. On the other hand, the public health, innovation and intellectual property plans will not have a fixed schedule, although they will submit a report to the 73 Assembly with the progress made.

On this point, the WHO Secretariat recommends collaborating with other international organizations to promote the national legislation development  and to protect public health from the potential impact of certain intellectual property provisions on the sector.

At the same time, Member States will promote the total or partial removal of  links between the drugs’ price and the costs of research and development. Both actions aim to protect public health from the abuse of the pharmaceutical patents holders, within the framework of the regulations established by the World Trade Organization (WTO).