India, With Brazil, Proposes Delinkage Feasibility Study in WHA Cancer Resolution

During negotiations on the cancer resolution at the World Health Organization Executive Board meeting in January 2017, India, with the support of Brazil, proposed adding language to a resolution on cancer that would require the WHO to conduct a feasibility study on the creation of a multi-country push and pull fund for cancer research and development, based on the progressive delinkage of cancer research and development costs from product prices.

The proposed language, which will continue to be the subject of negotiation leading up to the 70th World Health Assembly in May 2017, is as follows:

(OP2.5ter) [to conduct a [preliminary] (Brazil) feasibility study of creating a multi-country push and pull fund for cancer R&D, as an alternative to incentives-based intellectual property rights and/or regulatory monopolies and to progressively delink cancer R&D costs from product prices;] (India)