USTR Tai: US to back waiver of vaccine IP protections at WTO

The US will support a proposal to waive intellectual property protections for COVID-19 vaccines, in order to increase global supply and access to the life-saving shots, the country’s Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in an interview on Wednesday.

Key quotes

“We are for the waiver at the WTO, we are for what the proponents of the waiver are trying to accomplish, which is better access, more manufacturing capability, more shots in arms.” 

“In terms of how soon the WTO can deliver -- that literally depends on the WTO members, collectively, being able to deliver, and so I am the first one to admit that what we are leaning into is a process that is not going to be easy.”

“Sees energy from WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala “to take this opportunity and see what is the WTO capable of.”

Market reaction

In reaction to the above comments, Shares of Moderna Inc., Pfizer Inc., BioNTech SE and Novavax Inc, as drugmakers believe that the plan is ineffective.