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Law Centre for Health and Life LHCL

Access to Medicines

Research Line: Public Health

Recent events (ex. Coronavirus pandemics, medicines shortages, high medicines prices) pose a danger to public health and threaten the fabric of our social and economic wellbeing. Law and regulation are tools to incentivize the development and production of new medicines, control their safety and price, and ensure they are allocated fairly to all who need them. However, unresolved tensions in trade and pharmaceutical law and governance can lead to profiteering, ‘vaccine nationalism’, and other policy responses.

This research line aims to improve access to new, safe, and affordable medicines for global health needs. Using the Covid-19 pandemic, antimicrobial resistance, universal health coverage, and other case studies, this research line explores regulatory and governance responses through different legal lenses (ex. human/fundamental rights, public health law, etc.), and makes innovative proposals to address persistent tensions in this field. This research line combines legal, regulatory, and ethical approaches to guide the action of states and the private sector towards equitable development, marketing, procurement, and allocation of medicines.

  • Effective and Affordable Flu Vaccines for the World

    Influenza represents a significant worldwide public health challenge, resulting in an estimated 500,000 fatalities annually. Each year, the influenza pandemic affects countless individuals across the globe. What initially appears as a relatively simple flu infection can escalate into a severe or even life-threatening secondary infection. INDIGO is a research initiative with as the primary objective to foster the development of vaccines aimed at alleviating the global influenza burden, particularly by safeguarding vulnerable and marginalized populations.  

    The researchers affiliated with the Law Centre for Health and Life, who are participating in the consortium, are contributing to the work package on ‘Dissemination, Exploitation and Regulation’. They are working on regulation, and their research relates to ensuring equitable access to vaccines. In particular, they look at the impact of the legal and regulatory framework in EU and India on access to vaccines in specific least-developed countries. Project INDIGO is a jointly funded research and innovation project funded by the European Commission, as part of the Horizon 2020 research and innovation program, and India’s Department of Biotechnology. The INDIGO consortium, coordinated by the Amsterdam Institute for Global Health and Development (on behalf of Amsterdam UMC) in Europe and the Translational Health Science and Technology Institute in India, brings together 17 partners: 9 from the EU, 6 from India, and 1 from the US. INDIGO is a 5-year program aimed at moving towards a next-generation influenza vaccine. This programme contributes to Sustainable Development Goal 3: to ensure health and well-being, at every stage of life. 

  • Publications

    • Parwani, P. (2023). Decoding the Tecfidera Case: The Court of Justice of the European Union’s Verdict on the “Same Global Marketing Authorisation”. European Journal of Risk Regulation, 1-9. 

    • Marceau, G., & Parwani, P. (2021). COVID-19 and international trade: The role of the WTO in fighting the pandemic and building back better. Global Trade and Customs Journal, 16(7/8). 

    • Perehudoff, K., Durán, C., Demchenko, I., Mazzanti, V., Parwani, P., Suleman, F., & de Ruijter, A. (2021). Impact of the European Union on access to medicines in low- and middle-income countries: A scoping review. Lancet Regional Health Europe, 9, [100219]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lanepe.2021.100219  

Affiliated researchers:

P. (Pramiti) Parwani

Main researcher

p.parwani@uva.nl +31 (0)6 33 21 65 15

Dr. S.K. (Katrina) Perehudoff

Supervisor

s.k.perehudoff@uva.nl

Prof. dr. mr. A. (Anniek) de Ruijter

Supervisor

a.deruijter@uva.nl +31 (0)20 525 3445