[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 36, Number 19 (Monday, May 15, 2000)]
[Pages 1058-1060]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Executive Order 13155--Access to HIV/AIDS Pharmaceuticals and Medical 
Technologies

May 10, 2000

    By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and 
the laws of the United States of America, including sections 141 and 
chapter 1 of title III of the Trade Act of 1974, as amended (19 U.S.C. 
2171, 2411-2420), section 307 of the Public Health Service Act (42 
U.S.C. 2421), and section 104 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as 
amended (22 U.S.C. 2151b), and in accordance with executive branch 
policy on health-related intellectual property matters to promote access 
to essential medicines, it is hereby ordered as follows:
    Section 1.  Policy.  (a) In administering sections 301-310 of the 
Trade Act of 1974, the United States shall not seek, through negotiation 
or otherwise, the revocation or revision of any intellectual property 
law or policy of

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a beneficiary sub-Saharan African country, as determined by the 
President, that regulates HIV/AIDS pharmaceuticals or medical 
technologies if the law or policy of the country:
    (1) promotes access to HIV/AIDS pharmaceuticals or medical 
technologies for affected populations in that country; and
    (2) provides adequate and effective intellectual property protection 
consistent with the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual 
Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) referred to in section 101(d)(15) of 
the Uruguay Round Agreements Act (19 U.S.C. 3511(d)(15)).
    (b) The United States shall encourage all beneficiary sub-Saharan 
African countries to implement policies designed to address the 
underlying causes of the HIV/AIDS crisis by, among other things, making 
efforts to encourage practices that will prevent further transmission 
and infection and to stimulate development of the infrastructure 
necessary to deliver adequate health services, and by encouraging 
policies that provide an incentive for public and private research on, 
and development of, vaccines and other medical innovations that will 
combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa.
    Sec. 2.  Rationale: (a) This order finds that:
    (1) since the onset of the worldwide HIV/AIDS epidemic, 
approximately 34 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa have been 
infected with the disease;
    (2) of those infected, approximately 11.5 million have died;
    (3) the deaths represent 83 percent of the total HIV/AIDS-related 
deaths worldwide; and
    (4) access to effective therapeutics for HIV/AIDS is determined by 
issues of price, health system infrastructure for delivery, and 
sustainable financing.
    (b) In light of these findings, this order recognizes that:
    (1) it is in the interest of the United States to take all 
reasonable steps to prevent further spread of infectious disease, 
particularly HIV/AIDS;
    (2) there is critical need for effective incentives to develop new 
pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and therapies to combat the HIV/AIDS crisis, 
including effective global intellectual property standards designed to 
foster pharmaceutical and medical innovation;
    (3) the overriding priority for responding to the crisis of HIV/AIDS 
in sub-Saharan Africa should be to improve public education and to 
encourage practices that will prevent further transmission and 
infection, and to stimulate development of the infrastructure necessary 
to deliver adequate health care services;
    (4) the United States should work with individual countries in sub-
Saharan Africa to assist them in development of effective public 
education campaigns aimed at the prevention of HIV/AIDS transmission and 
infection, and to improve their health care infrastructure to promote 
improved access to quality health care for their citizens in general, 
and particularly with respect to the HIV/AIDS epidemic;
    (5) an effective United States response to the crisis in sub-Saharan 
Africa must focus in the short term on preventive programs designed to 
reduce the frequency of new infections and remove the stigma of the 
disease, and should place a priority on basic health services that can 
be used to treat opportunistic infections, sexually transmitted 
infections, and complications associated with HIV/AIDS so as to prolong 
the duration and improve the quality of life of those with the disease;
    (6) an effective United States response to the crisis must also 
focus on the development of HIV/AIDS vaccines to prevent the spread of 
the disease;
    (7) the innovative capacity of the United States in the commercial 
and public pharmaceutical research sectors is unmatched in the world, 
and the participation of both these sectors will be a critical element 
in any successful program to respond to the HIV/AIDS crisis in sub-
Saharan Africa;
    (8) the TRIPS Agreement recognizes the importance of promoting 
effective and adequate protection of intellectual property rights and 
the right of countries to adopt measures necessary to protect public 
health;
    (9) individual countries should have the ability to take measures to 
address the HIV/AIDS epidemic, provided that such measures are 
consistent with their international obligations; and

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    (10) successful initiatives will require effective partnerships and 
cooperation among governments, international organizations, 
nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector, and greater 
consideration should be given to financial, legal, and other incentives 
that will promote improved prevention and treatment actions.
    Sec. 3.  Scope.  (a) This order prohibits the United States 
Government from taking action pursuant to section 301(b) of the Trade 
Act of 1974 with respect to any law or policy in beneficiary sub-Saharan 
African countries that promotes access to HIV/AIDS pharmaceuticals or 
medical technologies and that provides adequate and effective 
intellectual property protection consistent with the TRIPS Agreement. 
However, this order does not prohibit United States Government officials 
from evaluating, determining, or expressing concern about whether such a 
law or policy promotes access to HIV/AIDS pharmaceuticals or medical 
technologies or provides adequate and effective intellectual property 
protection consistent with the TRIPS Agreement. In addition, this order 
does not prohibit United States Government officials from consulting 
with or otherwise discussing with sub-Saharan African governments 
whether such law or policy meets the conditions set forth in section 
1(a) of this order. Moreover, this order does not prohibit the United 
States Government from invoking the dispute settlement procedures of the 
World Trade Organization to examine whether any such law or policy is 
consistent with the Uruguay Round Agreements, referred to in section 
101(d) of the Uruguay Round Agreements Act.
    (b) This order is intended only to improve the internal management 
of the executive branch and is not intended to, and does not create, any 
right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law or 
equity by a party against the United States, its agencies or 
instrumentalities, its officers or employees, or any other person.
                                            William J. Clinton
 The White House,
 May 10, 2000.

 [Filed with the Office of the Federal Register, 8:45 a.m., May 11, 
2000]

 Note:  This Executive order was published in the  Federal Register  on 
May 12.