Costa Rica Resists Privatized Drugs
The Central America Free Trade Treaty (CAFTA) - or Tratado Libre de Comercio (TLC) as it is known locally - with the United States will make public health in Costa Rica obsolete by dramatically reducing the use of generic drugs, the local pharmaceutical industry charges.

According to a document of the National Pharmaceutical Industry Association, the TLC promotes a monopoly over medicines and displaces generic quality drugs, which would put at risk coverage of health services.

The association affirmed a loss of health privileges granted by the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) - the Costa Rican social security - created during the mid 20th century that granted coverage to 90 percent of the population.

However, the document warns that current authorities of social security in the Oscar Arias government support parliamentary ratification of the agreement.

In the meantime, the pharmaceutical industry pointed out that the supply of generic medicines would weaken, negatively affecting access to health services and drop life expectancy in Costa Rica.

With the TLC, the costs of these products would be excessively high as a result of multi-national pharmaceutical companies, specifically for treatment of HIV AIDS, they explained.

Prices would rise from 22 to 80 percent, although in some cases they could increase fifteen times.

Costa Rica's Legislative Assembly has not yet ratified the agreement, mostly due to a strong pressure from numerous social sectors.

President Arias assures that the agreement will be ratified by Legislature by December and meeting the January deadline.

Costa Rica is the only signatory country that has yet to ratify the agreement, which is already in place in Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.