Testing Drugs Together With Those Who Need Them

• Author: Hans‐Jörg Ehni,Urban Wiesing
• Published date: 01 April 2012
• Date: 01 April 2012
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1515/1948-4682.1216

Volume 4, Issue 1 • 2012 • Article 2

Testing Drugs Together With Those Who Need Them

Hans-Jörg Ehni, University of Tuebingen

Urban Wiesing, University of Tuebingen

Ehni, Hans-Jörg and Wiesing, Urban (2012) "Testing Drugs Together With Those Who Need Them,"

World Medical & Health Policy: Vol. 4: Iss. 1, Article 2.

©2012 Policy Studies Organization

DOI: 10.1515/1948-4682.1216

Testing Drugs Together With Those Who

Need Them

Hans-Jörg Ehni, University of Tuebingen

Urban Wiesing, University of Tuebingen

Abstract

Under which conditions is international biomedical research in low and middle income

countries acceptable? For about 15 years there has been no agreement in the international bioethical

community on how to answer this question. Strict positions ask for universal global rules including

a global standard of medical care. Others are concerned that this would be too paternalistic and

want to leave space for negotiations between the parties involved. We want to point out that each

of the positions mentioned above can claim to meet widespread moral intuitions and to be based

on widely accepted ethical principles. However, they show also important weaknesses. In order to

provide evidence for this, we first outline the general context in which international biomedical

research is carried out. After analyzing each position in respect to two problems, the standard of

care and reasonable availability, we evaluate two paradigmatic clinical trials from the perspective

of both positions. This will help us to demonstrate their weaknesses. Finally, we argue for a middle

ground which can correct these weaknesses, and we will as well provide an ethical justification for

this middle ground.

KEYWORDS: research ethics, International biomedical research, standard of care, reasonable

availability, fair benefits

Author Notes: Conflicts of interest: None declared. Corresponding author: Hans-Jörg Ehni. Email:

hans-joerg.ehni@uni-tuebingen.de.