Universal access declaration reaches 88,000 signatures

The worldwide Declaration for Universal Access to Affordable Medicine has already amassed 88,000 signatures – including the MS International Federation’s.

The Access Our Medicine initiative aims to raise public awareness of the global problem of access to medicine.

Peer Baneke, Chief Executive of the MS International Federation, said: “The high cost of MS medicines has been raised at several of our meetings, and many of our member organisations and corresponding organisations in emerging countries have raised those costs as one of their most important challenges.

“Our Atlas of MS found that none of the disease-modifying drugs are reimbursed in low-income countries.”

Universal

The Declaration for Universal Access to Affordable Medicine:

• invites governments, pharmaceutical companies, international agencies, foundations and innovators to design systems and business models that support universal access to affordable medicine
• declares the need for universal access to affordable medicine so that the highest attainable standard of health is available to every human being.

Peer Baneke added: “We have signed the declaration in order to join forces with many other disease areas and to raise awareness of this issue, in particular at WHO, so that it becomes a major issue of attention at the highest level.”

Since the launch of the declaration in April 2014, Access Our Medicine has collected signatures from people and organizations in 148 countries. The ultimate goal is to collect 100,000 signatures and then present the declaration to Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General, on World Health Day, 7 April 2015.

Access was the theme of World MS Day 2014, and will remain the focus in 2015.

MS International Federation is encouraging its members and all those affected by MS to sign the declaration online at www.accessourmedicine.com.