Washington,
D.C. – U.S.
Senator Pat Toomey (R-Pa.) issued the following statement regarding the U.S.
Trade Representative’s (USTR) announcement that it supports waiving patent
protections on COVID-19 vaccines:
“America
should help developing nations access, administer, and produce COVID-19
vaccines.
“However,
this can be accomplished without forcing American companies to surrender their
intellectual property. Vaccine manufacturers and developers are already working
with developing nations to expand vaccine production, and waiving intellectual
property protections would do nothing to meet the acute need facing these
countries. However, it would undermine our ability to meet the next health
challenge.
“Developing
multiple vaccines at the pace we did was an incredible feat. Other countries in
the developed world recognize the role that respect for intellectual property
had in this accomplishment and have rejected this waiver proposal. I encourage
the Biden administration to drop this plan and instead work with Congress, our
allies, and these companies to increase global vaccine distribution while
maintaining basic protections for those who worked so hard to make this vaccine
possible.”
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