Washington: A group of senators has asked US President Joe Biden not to accept a request made by India and South Africa to the World Trade Organization (WTO) to relax their intellectual property rights laws related to the development of the Covid-19 vaccine. The letter from the president indicated that the number of covid vaccine manufacturers would increase exponentially if the laws made by American companies were removed in recognition of the demands of both countries.
Four Republican senators, Mike Lee, Tom Cotton, Johnny Ernst and Todd Young, wrote to Biden. The letter states that some countries believe that freezing the intellectual property rights of American companies will benefit them. The senators argue that the removal of the legal system will stifle the development of improved vaccines capable of combating new strains of the corona virus.
The senators say the removal of patents for American companies developing the vaccine could lead to other companies trying to produce similar vaccines, which could lead to the production of substandard vaccines that pose a threat not only to the United States but also to the world. The letter said the risk of a global pandemic was declining and that the new measure would adversely affect preventive measures, as 75 percent of the country’s population had been vaccinated.
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