PRNewswire - December 1, 2005

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Dec. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- The WTO must mark World AIDS Day by calling for the elimination of tariffs on AIDS medicines says Swedish Think Tank Eudoxa. The upcoming global trade talks in Hong Kong give hope that the World Trade Organization will move quickly over the next few weeks to increase access to medicines for HIV/AIDS patients and eliminate suffering by removing one of the largest barriers -- tariffs on medicines and medical devices entering countries around the world.

The policies of imposing taxes and tariffs on medicines and medical devices by governments in the developing world are reprehensible, often creating insurmountable barriers for people living with HIV/AIDS. Eliminating these barriers is a humanitarian cause that will improve access to treatment for those living with HIV/AIDS.

"On World AIDS Day, the World Trade Organization must be reminded that tariffs on essential medicines are a significant barrier to access," said Eudoxa founder and director, Waldemar Ingdahl. "Director General Pascal Lamy and the member states of the WTO must put the elimination of these tariffs at the top of the Hong Kong Ministerial agenda."

A recent study made by Dr. Roger Bate of the American Enterprise Institute and Richard Tren of Africa Fighting Malaria found that taxes and tariffs in some regions of the world were as high as 61 percent, with many of them reaching well above double-digit levels. Their study concluded that countries such as India and Brazil, two countries with large AIDS populations routinely tax essential medicines and medical devices at 20 and 29 percent respectively.

The World Health Organization in a report last May by Muge Olcay and Richard Laing confirmed the findings of Dr. Bate and Tren when it stated, "it is vital that policymakers, both at a national and international level, address the issue of tariffs on medicines and recognize the regressive nature of these duties, which ultimately tax the sick without regard for their economic status or ability to afford these medicines."

"We urge to WTO to heed to call of the WHO and address the issue of tariffs on medicines in Hong Kong and recognize the regressive nature of these duties," said Ingdahl.

The Eudoxa think tank is located in Stockholm, Sweden. Their focus is on discussing the effects of emerging technologies and scientific progress on society with classical free-market ideas and dynamist thoughts on experimentation. Eudoxa has published books and reports in Swedish, Danish and English.

For further information please contact Director Waldemar Ingdahl. Telephone +46 8 83 87 73, e-mail info@eudoxa.se

SOURCE Eudoxa

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