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Chancellor Merkel: "The protection of intellectual property is a source of innovation and must remain so in the future," said a statement by the federal government on patent protection
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Chancellor Angela Merkel and Biontech boss Ugur Sahin spoke on the phone on Thursday about the question of a possible suspension of the patents for corona vaccines.
According to SPIEGEL information, in addition to the topic of patent protection, the discussion also addressed the question of how the Mainz research company and the federal government can jointly do more to provide vaccines to poorer countries.
The aim is not a one-off, short-term help, it is said from informed circles, but a sustainable supply, also for possible further pandemics.
On Wednesday, the United States surprisingly advocated suspending the patents in an exemption.
Both Merkel and Biontech boss Sahin reject this.
The federal government issued a statement on Thursday evening warning of the patent suspension and opposing the move from Washington. "The protection of intellectual property is a source of innovation and must remain so in the future," said a government spokeswoman in Berlin. The US proposal for a revocation of patent protection for Covid-19 vaccines has "significant implications for vaccine production as a whole".
To what extent Sahin could possibly have encouraged the Chancellor to oppose the American advance is unknown. Government circles said that insisting on patent protection had long been Merkel's stance. As early as the summer of 2020, the federal government responded to a small request from the left that “within the applicable framework for intellectual property law, we are committed to ensuring that tests, drugs and vaccines are developed, manufactured and globally in large quantities and at affordable prices can be distributed «.
The background to the US advance is an initiative at the World Trade Organization, which was initiated by South Africa and India. More than one hundred WTO member countries already support the project. Numerous non-governmental organizations, including Doctors Without Borders, have vehemently called for the patents to be suspended. The aim is for more companies to be able to manufacture vaccines in more countries so that poorer countries in particular can be better supplied. However, many experts do not see the manufacturing formula as a bottleneck, but rather raw materials, factories and supplier networks.
"The limiting factor in the manufacture of vaccines are the production capacities and the high quality standards, not the patents," the federal government said.
"We are working in many ways on how we can improve production capacities within Germany and within the European Union, but also worldwide." The companies concerned are doing this with great commitment.
The federal government stands behind the goal of a worldwide supply of Covid-19 vaccines, emphasized the government spokeswoman at the same time.
For example, Germany supported the Covax initiative with around one billion euros with the aim of ensuring that as many people in the world as possible had access to vaccines.