However, implementing such a move could be a lengthy process as all 164 WTO member countries are required to arrive at a consent..
The pharmaceutical industry, which has long defended patents as the key to research and development of new treatments, criticized the move, with its biggest lobby group warning that it would undermine pandemic response and compromise safety.Several pharmaceutical analysts said IP waivers may on the surface help a world facing a pandemic, but manufacturing the vaccines was a barrier.
Jefferies analyst Michael Yee said while the proposal was not a good “headline” for biotech and could affect earnings, in reality, the bottleneck is neither access nor patents but simply that there aren’t enough vials, raw materials. It would probably take a year after an IP deal was struck for anyone to make a vaccine, Scott Gottlieb, former head of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and Pfizer board member said in a CNBC interview.
Moderna CEO Stephan Bancel too doubted if the IP waiver would help as its technology has been open since October to anyone for use during the pandemic.