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<p>The UK is committed to ensuring access to low cost, effective medicines in the
developing world, providing a range of other significant inputs to increasing access
to essential medicines.</p><p> </p><p>A new £1 billion fund – the Ross Fund - was
recently announced with the aim of developing, testing and delivering a range of new
products to help combat the world’s most serious diseases, such as malaria, Ebola
and TB in developing countries.</p><p> </p><p>We support the provision of essential
medicines and other health products through innovative global partnerships such as
the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, UNITAID, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance
and the Medicines Patent Pool (MPP). We work to strengthen systems weaknesses, such
as weak supply chains or poor procurement, which deter private investment, keep medicines
prices high or lead to misuse or waste of medicines. We also place a great emphasis
on research and development of new vaccines, medicines and diagnostics for conditions
that affect millions of poor people. For example, the UK is a leading investor in
public-private Product Development Partnerships (PDPs), designed to stimulate research
and development (R&D) where market incentives are insufficient.</p><p> </p><p>We
support the aims of the UN High Level Panel on Access to Medicines. For it to fulfil
its potential to improve access to affordable and quality medicines it will need to
take a balanced approach, building and urge them to build on the WHO Global Strategy
and Plan of Action (including underlying in-depth reports and discussions), and engaging
withe existing global partnerships, and use its influence to galvanise Member States,
public and private sectors around a common approach to this important issue.</p><p>
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