Trade agreements and intellectual property rights: What's new?

Advocates for access to affordable medicines have long criticized intellectual property (IP) provisions in international trade agreements that buttress the rights of pharmaceutical patent holders to charge monopoly prices.  IP policies have shifted in response, such as in the US-Peru Free Trade Agreement in 2007, and in practice in countries like Thailand.  However, IP rules remain a contentious issue, and both the industry and advocates continue to campaign for their relative advantages.  As a new US administration approaches trade policy, this presentation reviews the state of the debate, with reference to enforcement of the US-Central America Free Trade Agreement, and negotiations at the World Trade Organization.