The Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement negotiations and the health of Australians

The Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement has the potential to negatively impact the health of Australians by raising the cost of medicine and limiting the government's ability to regulate tobacco and alcohol, argues this paper, based on publicly available and recently leaked negotiating documents. The purpose of this policy brief, by the Centre for Health Equity Training, Research and Evaluation at the University of New South Wales, is to inform the debate from a health perspective in the final stages of the negotiations on the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) in February 2014. The brief focuses on two specific issues: the cost of medicines, and the ability of government to take major steps to improve the health of Australians by regulating the areas of tobacco and alcohol policy.

The authors conclude that while there is some potential for the TPPA to contribute to economic development, there is also significant risk that the economic gains and the health of the Australian community, will be threatened if certain proposed provisions are adopted for the TPPA. These include increased direct costs in terms of providing health care and increased use of hospitals, higher costs of obtaining pharmaceuticals, indirect costs associated with lost productivity across society, continuing or exacerbating inequalities in society, and the worsening health of Australia’s already vulnerable communities.
Authored by: Katie Hirono, Deborah Gleeson, Fiona Haigh, Patrick Harris  (APO 19/2/14)