Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Get your science fix here: research, quackery, activism and all the rest
Post Reply
User avatar
GeenDienst
Dorkwood
Posts: 1093
Joined: Wed Nov 13, 2019 10:10 am

Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by GeenDienst » Fri Dec 06, 2019 8:21 am

Poster at a meeting what I'm at. (MENACTRIMS) tht might be of some interest.

Cross sectional study in Tehran. Lack of availability of drugs from abroad is causing economic and psychological stress and increasing likelihood of stopping treatment (these people really don't need to stop treatment).

Poster is here, good enough res to read though I chopped the title off, because I'm sh.t. Something like "Economic sanctions threaten MS patents' health in Iran".


https://i.ibb.co/h7qT0R2/sanc.jpg
Just tell 'em I'm broke and don't come round here no more.

User avatar
Bird on a Fire
Princess POW
Posts: 10137
Joined: Fri Oct 11, 2019 5:05 pm
Location: Portugal

Re: Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by Bird on a Fire » Fri Dec 06, 2019 10:37 am

This is tragic, and also seems to be a well-known consequence of economic sanctions (I recall similar stories recently from Venezuela, for instance).

It really beggars belief that there is no sensible humanitarian exception to these sanctions, and that innocent people's lives are considered an acceptable cost in order to ramp up the pressure on protectionist regimes that restrict the West's access to fossil fuels.

I wish India, China and the like every success in their manufacturing of patented drugs, TBH.
We have the right to a clean, healthy, sustainable environment.

User avatar
Gfamily
Light of Blast
Posts: 5180
Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 1:00 pm
Location: NW England

Re: Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by Gfamily » Fri Dec 06, 2019 11:29 am

Bird on a Fire wrote:
Fri Dec 06, 2019 10:37 am
This is tragic, and also seems to be a well-known consequence of economic sanctions (I recall similar stories recently from Venezuela, for instance).

It really beggars belief that there is no sensible humanitarian exception to these sanctions, and that innocent people's lives are considered an acceptable cost in order to ramp up the pressure on protectionist regimes that restrict the West's access to fossil fuels.
Isn't it the case that one of the use case outcomes for sanctions is that degradation of life for the innocent and oppressed will stoke the threat of a popular uprising?
Allowing humanitarian relief reduces the pressure for that, and helps to secure the regime. People are suffering but they're not the sanctioners' people.
My avatar was a scientific result that was later found to be 'mistaken' - I rarely claim to be 100% correct
ETA 5/8/20: I've been advised that the result was correct, it was the initial interpretation that needed to be withdrawn
Meta? I'd say so!

User avatar
Sciolus
Dorkwood
Posts: 1314
Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 6:42 pm

Re: Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by Sciolus » Fri Dec 06, 2019 8:23 pm

I'm reminded of the sanctions against Iraq under Saddam, which were widely condemned for causing misery and health problems for the general population. A significant cause of support for the invasion was that at least removing Saddam would allow sanctions to be ended.

These days, it seems that sanctions are often directed against named individuals in the regime rather than the country as a whole.

User avatar
Woodchopper
Princess POW
Posts: 7057
Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2019 9:05 am

Re: Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by Woodchopper » Sat Dec 07, 2019 3:51 am

The UN sanctions directed at Iran don’t cover exports of pharmaceutical products. They are concerned with arms and the nuclear programme.

However, in 2018 Trump reinstated US sanctions which pretty much prohibit all US companies from dealing with Iran. This means that any company with operations in the US won’t want to be involved in selling a product to an Iranian customer (which covers most of the pharmaceutical and financial services industries that would be needed to export drugs).

It’s possible to to get a US government license to export specific products. I’ve no idea how easy that would be. But I wouldn’t be surprised if most companies just decided not to go near the Iranian market.

Iran will be able to import substitute products from other suppliers. However there will be serious problems with pharmaceuticals protected by global patents.

As mentioned, the logic of the US sanctions is to put pressure on the Iranian government by hurting the population. That inevitably means hurting the most vulnerable.

The only thing that can be said in their favour is that the harm caused by sanctions is probably less than if the US were to start bombing instead.

User avatar
Sciolus
Dorkwood
Posts: 1314
Joined: Mon Nov 11, 2019 6:42 pm

Re: Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by Sciolus » Sat Dec 07, 2019 9:42 am

Also Iran is prohibited from selling its oil, so they haven't got much money to import things anyway. I'm not aware that there is an equivalent of the Iraq "oil for food" arrangement.

User avatar
Woodchopper
Princess POW
Posts: 7057
Joined: Sat Oct 12, 2019 9:05 am

Re: Sanctions harming patients in Iran

Post by Woodchopper » Sat Dec 07, 2019 5:51 pm

Sciolus wrote:
Sat Dec 07, 2019 9:42 am
Also Iran is prohibited from selling its oil, so they haven't got much money to import things anyway. I'm not aware that there is an equivalent of the Iraq "oil for food" arrangement.
US sanctions cover oil, but not the UN sanctions. So Iran can sell its oil to other countries and import food etc - presumably via companies that don’t have US operations.

The US sanctions probably have reduced Iran’s income from oil exports.

Post Reply