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Monday, October 31, 2011

Deadly Monopolies

Watch this video interview with medical ethicist Harriet Washington on the ethical dilemma of medical monopolies from patents. She says that the medical-complex has come to own too much of human life, and she's right. In the past 30 years, over 40,000 patents have been issued on genes alone. For more information, check out the original article here.

Sunday, October 30, 2011

National Conference

We have just ended the 2011 UAEM National Conference! Our chapter learned new tactics for approaching
policy changes at our university, and we are enthusiastic about the changes ahead. United with universities around the world, we are proud to be part of this movement for essential
social change. As a public educational institution, we have both a moral obligation and academic responsibility to utilize our knowledge for the betterment of humankind. Equal access to medicines is equal access to life.

They go to die

Check out they go to die, a movie about the worlds biggest TB outbreak in South African gold mines. Check it out at http://theygotodie-movie.com and be sure to donate so that this important story can be heard by everyone!!!

Saturday, October 29, 2011

UAEM 2011 Conference Updates

Hello All! This is Rebeccah reporting from the 2011 UAEM National Conference. Universities around the world are represented at this conference, including ones from Brazil, Germany, United Kingdom, and many more, and we are all united under one common mission: equal access to medicines. We have just completed our first set of sessions, which have been extremely informative. This morning, the group was broken into two different tracks- introductory and advanced. The introductory track focused on the history of UAEM including mission, values, and reasons to become actively involved in the fight for equal access to medicines. The advanced track presented ways to actively pursue advocacy and policy changes on individual campuses. Our chapter at Central Michigan University has already learned a lot from these first sessions, such as how and who to approach within the administration to further our goal of adopting global access licensing agreements. We have also gained more support and logic for adopting these agreements- Harvard has global access licensing in 75% of agreements, and have seen a subsequent increase in revenue! We learn a lot from the efforts and successes of other universities. Collaboration is key. We are excited for the remainder of the conference, including Stephen Lewis, co-founder of AIDS Free World, as the keynote speaker. We will keep you updated regarding what we learn from this great conference. -Rebeccah

National Conference Twitter Updates

Check our Twitter @cmich_uaem for updates on UAEM national conference. We will be updated periodically today, for all those not joining us in Baltimore!

Thursday, October 27, 2011

CMU to host international conference on human rights

Central Michigan University will host an international conference on Human Rights, Literature, the Arts and Social Sciences Nov. 11-12. This conference will focus on how writers, artists, musicians, theorists and scholars discuss, represent, and promote human rights. Presenters include Winona LaDuke, Dr. Robert Lemelson, conductor Murry Sidlin, and Justice Murray Sinclair. Conference admission is free to CMU faculty, staff and students, but registration is required. Lunch fees are $10 per lunch per person. To view a complete conference schedule, visit this website. This conference is going to be awesome!

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Drug Shortages in America

Although we normally focus our attention on access issues abroad, it is important to see that access issues sometimes hit home too. One such issue is with drug shortages in American hospitals. Drug companies have been slowly leaving the market for essential medicines to help with cancer treatment,anesthetics, antibiotics, and nutrient solutions. Due to less companies producing the drugs, there is a gap in delivery of these medicines even inside America, as other companies cannot keep up with the demand. Click here to read the original article and find out more.

Say Yes to Drugs!

Join in and sign the petition to say yes to drugs! Which is in support of getting Merck into the Medicine Patent Pool. To find out more, go to ! Also: check out their video and sign the petition! It doesn't make sense for other pharmaceuticals to submit to the patent pool but for Merck to hold out, their products can save lives! Improve access to AIDS drugs worldwide!