Clinton order on patents

President Clinton issued an executive order that prohibits the State Department, U.S. Trade Representative or other government officials from taking actions to inhibit sub-Saharan African countries from imposing mandatory licenses for HIV/AIDS drugs.

The order stipulates that the new policy applies only to laws that are otherwise consistent with the Agreement on Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS). TRIPS allows governments to impose compulsory licensing and to allow parallel imports from countries with price controls to combat a health emergency. ...