Compulsory Licensing: Compulsory licensing allows a third party to apply for a product license without the consent of the patentee. [See FAQ: Compulsory Licensing]

Essential Drugs List (EDL): A country-specific list of drugs considered necessary to meet the health care needs of the majority of the population and appropriate for use in the specific country setting. (Source: Reich, Michael R., "An Assessment of U.S. Pharmaceutical Donations: Players, Processes and Products," Harvard School of Public Health, 1999)

Intellectual Property (IP): Intellectual Property is a body of law developed to protect creative people who have disclosed their work for the benefit of humankind from having it copied or imitated without their consent. [See FAQ: Intellectual Property]

Orphan Drugs: Orphan drugs are medicines to treat diseases affecting fewer than 200,000 patients. In the U.S., 10 to 20 million patients suffer from about 5,000 orphan diseases for which there is no effective cure or treatment. The Orphan Drug Act, initially enacted in 1983 and made permanent in 1997, was developed to help these patients. The law provides incentives (a period of market exclusivity and a tax credit for research expenses) to help make it commercially feasible to develop these drugs. In the decade after this law was passed, 99 orphan drugs were approved, compared to 10 in the previous decade.

PAHO: The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is an international public health agency working to improve health and living standards of the countries of the Americas. It serves as the specialized organization for health of the Inter-American System and as the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization. [PAHO webpage]

Parallel Trade: Parallel trade is the purchase of goods at low prices in one country and the subsequent re-sale of those goods at higher prices in another country. [See FAQ; Trade]

Patent: A patent is a legal, public document granting an intellectual property right to the patent holder. At the same time the information relating to the invention is made public, thereby enhancing the public good and protecting the rights of the inventor.[See FAQ; Intellectual Property]

Priority Foreign Countries: Priority foreign countries are those trading partners so designated by the USTR for failure to provide adequate and effective intellectual property protection or that fail to provide market access for U.S. citizens or corporations relying on IP. Countries designated as PFC may be subject to withdrawal of unilateral trade benefits (i.e., trade sanctions). [See FAQ: Priority Foreign Countries].

TRIPS Agreement: The WTO "Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights" (TRIPS) agreement provides minimum international standards for intellectual property rights, including patents, and for enforcement of those rights, which each member of the WTO must incorporate into its national laws. [See FAQ; TRIPS]

UNAIDS: The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS is sponsored by six international organizations (UNICEF, UNDP, UNFPA, UNDCP, UNESCO, WHO, and the World Bank). Its global mission is to lead, strengthen, and support a response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic and to coordinate strategic alliances among UN agencies, national governments, corporations, media, community-based groups, and other non-governmental organizations. [UNAIDS webpage]

Uruguay Round Agreement: The Uruguay Round Agreement was the basis for the creation of the World Trade Organization (WTO), as we know it today. [See FAQ; Uruguay Round]

USTR: The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) develops and coordinates U.S. international trade, commodity, and direct investment policy. The U.S. Trade Representative is a Cabinet member who acts as the principal trade advisor, negotiator, and spokesperson for the President on trade and investment matters. [USTR webpage]

WHO: The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations, focusing on health issues among its 191 Member States. WHO provides technical cooperation for health among nations, carries out programs to control and eradicate disease and strives to improve the quality of human life. [WHO webpage]

WTO: The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only international organization dealing with the global rules of trade between nations. Its main function is to ensure that trade flows as smoothly, predictably and freely as possible. [WTO webpage]