The Role of Intellectual Property in the Global Challenge for Immunization

The contemporary scenario of international immunization is focused on the implementation of vaccination programs in developing countries, which demonstrates obvious similarities with the policy "access to medicines'' under the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights. However, the debate on immunization involves distinct elements and presents different concerns and obstacles, which will be presented throughout this study. Three introductory remarks need to be made in order to place intellectual property (IP) as a core problem of global immunization. The first is that immunization is a world priority. The second is that the global immunization challenge faces the hurdle of the poverty gap. Finally, IP plays a controversial role in the implementation of immunization programs in less developed countries.