Medicines Patent Pool

The Medicines Patent Pool (MPP) is a United Nations-backed organisation founded in July 2010^[1] and based in Geneva, Switzerland. The MPP offers a public health-driven business model that aims to lower the prices of HIV, tuberculosis and hepatitis C medicines and facilitate the development of better-adapted HIV treatment through voluntary licensing and patent pooling.

Financing

The MPP was founded and remains fully funded by UNITAID, a financing mechanism that targets HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis in developing countries. In its first grant phase 2010-2015, the MPP worked exclusively in the HIV field and in December 2014, UNITAID approved another funding package for MPP to continue its HIV work through 2020. In November 2015, the Executive Board at UNITAID approved the expansion of MPP's mandate to hepatitis C and tuberculosis treatment. The MPP was the first and is now the only independent patent pool that aims to tackle the issue of access to HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and tuberculosis drugs in low- and middle-income countries.

Activities and achievements

To date the MPP has signed agreements with AbbVie,^[2] Bristol-Myers Squibb,^[3] Gilead Sciences,^[4][5] MSD,^[6] F. Hoffmann-La Roche ^[7] the US National Institutes of Health,^[8] ViiV Healthcare,^[9][10] for twelve HIV medicines and with Bristol-Myers Squibb^[11] for a hepatitis C medicine. Fourteen generic manufacturers have now licensed from the MPP and are actively distributing generic medicines in developing countries or pursuing development plans for future introduction.

In October 2012, the MPP, Gilead Sciences and the UN National Institutes of Health/University of Illinois were honoured by the Licensing Executives Society (United States and Canada) (LES) for licence agreements that expand access to affordable HIV medicines in developing countries. The LES’s annual "Deals of Distinction" Awards are presented to notable intellectual property agreements in five industry sectors and the three parties were recognised for precedence-setting licensing agreements dedicated to improving public health under the Industry-University-Government Interface category.^[12]

In May 2014, the MPP, UNITAID and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative launched the Paediatric HIV Treatment Initiative (PHTI)^[13] to scale-up HIV treatment for children. The Clinton Health Access Initiative joined the effort in July. The PHTI focuses on developing and delivering specific formulations and combinations adapted for children.

The Access to Medicine Index lauded the MPP for the transparency of its licences and "encourag[ed] all companies engaged in Voluntary Licensing to meet the high standards demonstrated in the MPP agreements." in November 2014. Through its licensing agreements, the MPP estimates that it has saved the international community $120M from lower prices on generic HIV medicines.

Structure

The MPP is governed by a governance board, which is a type of Executive Board, composed of nine members and advised by an Expert Advisory Group comprising twelve members and several ad hoc experts.^[14] The MPP Executive Director is Greg Perry, the former founder and Director of the European Generic Medicines Association.

Previously, the MPP was led by Chan Park, currently the MPP General Counsel, who served as ad interim ED following the departure ^[15] of Ellen 't Hoen, the MPP's first Executive Director.

References