The global drug cap

Global inequities in access to pharmaceutical products exist between rich a nd poor countries because of market and government failures as well as huge income differences. Multiple policies are required to address this global drug gap for three categories of pharmaceutical products: essential drugs, new drugs, and yet-to-be-developed drugs. Policies should combine "push" ap proaches of financial subsidies to support targeted drug development, "pull " approaches of financial incentives such as market guarantees, and "proces s" approaches aimed at improved institutional-capacity. Constructive soluti ons are needed that can both protect the incentives for research and develo pment and reduce the inequities of access.