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Recent action by multinational pharmaceutical company Abbott Laboratories threatens access to life-saving medicines. Email their CEO today!
Thailand recently attempted to take measures to lower the price of urgently needed drugs, so that it could expand access to HIV treatment among the poor. But Thailand immediately found itself under attack from pharmaceutical companies.
Abbott Laboratories, manufacturer of the key AIDS drug Kaletra, has gone one step further and announced it will withdraw registration of all new drugs in Thailand and will not sell any new medicines in the country, unless Thailand reverses its decision.
This is a blatant attempt to bully Thailand, and to scare off other developing countries that may try to exercise their rights to protect public health.
Take action now!
Find out more
Read more about Thailand’s efforts to protect public health and Abbott’s response.
Ask Abbott to stop bullying Thailand, and threatening the health of its people, by emailing Abbott’s CEO Miles White now. You can use the text below, but if you have time, a message in your own words will have more impact.
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When the action was active, this was our suggested text.
Stop Abbott blocking access to treatment
Dear Miles White,
I am very concerned about your company's recent decision to stop the introduction of seven new medicines in Thailand, including the new heat-stable version of Kaletra, following Thailand's attempt legally to produce and import affordable medicines for its people.
Thailand's decision to issue government-use licences for lopinavir/ritonavir (marketed by Abbott as Kaletra), is legal, fully consistent with the TRIPS Agreement, follows the advice of the World Bank and the World Health Organisation, and follows attempts to negotiate lower prices. Thailand's move was part of its commitment to achieve and sustain the internationally agreed goal of universal access to HIV treatment. The move will drastically reduce HIV treatment costs allowing the government to save an additional 8,000 lives.
Abbott's actions threaten the health of people in Thailand and beyond, particularly the poor.
I urge you to:
* Immediately stop the withdrawal of applcations to register products in Thailand.
* Stop bullying countries who exercise their legal rights to access afordable medicines through flexibilities in the TRIPS agreement.
Yours sincerely,
