Rich countries are first in line for Covid vaccines because a handful of companies control both the price and quantity | Patricia Ranald

A proposal to relax monopoly patents could allow low-income nations to access coronavirus treatments sooner, but it needs support

Pharmaceutical company patent monopolies are the elephant in the room in the debate about Covid-19 vaccine shortages in Australia.

Most of debate locally has been about whether the federal government ordered enough vaccine doses last year from Pfizer and other companies. This misses the broader point that a handful of pharmaceutical companies control both the price and quantity of vaccines.

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from The Guardian https://ift.tt/3rrUvfG
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