GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), the biggest pharmaceutical firm in the UK, announced that they will make it easier for people in developing countries to buy desperately needed medicine by not filing patents.
The company also plans to commit future cancer medicine to the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP), an organization backed by the United Nations that strives to increase access to treatments in poor countries.
Local drug manufacturers in the developing countries will now have the opportunity to produce and sell GSK’s drugs at a cheaper price while also boosting the local economy. For Lower Middle Income Countries GSK have introduced a new policy: they will still file for patents, but they will allow the countries to produce the cheaper version drugs for the upcoming 10 years.
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