IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/socmed/v275y2021ics0277953621001398.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Globalization and health policy space: Introducing the WTOhealth dataset of trade challenges to national health regulations at World Trade Organization, 1995–2016

Author

Listed:
  • Barlow, P.
  • Stuckler, D.

Abstract

Do international trade rules and agreements constrain health policy space? A multitude of global actors and institutions with different interests and power can shape national health policy, and trade rules provide one means through which to exert pressure on governments. Yet, the full scope of political pressure on health policy within the global trade regime is insufficiently understood, as previous research largely focussed on challenges to food, alcohol, and tobacco regulations and used small-N case studies. This potentially overlooks other domains of influence and we lack an understanding of quantitative trends and patterns therein. In this article we introduce a novel dataset, WTOhealth, comprising all challenges to national health regulations at the WTO Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) Committee between 1995 and 2016. The dataset is based on 1496 pages of minutes from 71 TBT meetings. We describe how we developed this dataset and present an exploratory analysis of key patterns within the data. Our analysis shows that WTO members raised 250 trade challenges to health regulations between 1995 and 2016. 83.6% of challenges to low- or lower-middle income country (LMIC) members were raised by high-income countries (HICs). Many challenges centred on food (16.4% challenges), alcohol (10.4%), and tobacco (4.2%) policies, but a substantial proportion concerned other products, including toxic chemicals (9.1%), pharmaceuticals and medical devices (8.1%), machinery (7.8%), and motor vehicles (7.3%). This includes measures targeting medical device safety, increased access to pharmaceuticals, and reduced exposure to toxins harmful to both health and the environment. We further examine these challenges, finding that HIC members made claims with contentious scientific support. In short, diverse health regulations may be changed or delayed following contentious challenges at the TBT Committee. There is a need for further research investigating the nature and influence of WTO challenges to diverse health regulations.

Suggested Citation

  • Barlow, P. & Stuckler, D., 2021. "Globalization and health policy space: Introducing the WTOhealth dataset of trade challenges to national health regulations at World Trade Organization, 1995–2016," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 275(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:275:y:2021:i:c:s0277953621001398
    DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.113807
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0277953621001398
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.socscimed.2021.113807?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Ruckert, Arne & Labonté, Ronald & Lencucha, Raphael & Runnels, Vivien & Gagnon, Michelle, 2016. "Global health diplomacy: A critical review of the literature," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 155(C), pages 61-72.
    2. Andreas Dür & Leonardo Baccini & Manfred Elsig, 2014. "The design of international trade agreements: Introducing a new dataset," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 9(3), pages 353-375, September.
    3. Wijkström, Erik & McDaniels, Devin, 2013. "International standards and the WTO TBT Agreement: Improving governance for regulatory alignment," WTO Staff Working Papers ERSD-2013-06, World Trade Organization (WTO), Economic Research and Statistics Division.
    4. McGrady,Benn, 2011. "Trade and Public Health," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107008410.
    5. Mario Larch & José-Antonio Monteiro & Roberta Piermartini & Yoto V. Yotov, 2019. "On the Effects of GATT/WTO Membership on Trade: They Are Positive and Large after All," CESifo Working Paper Series 7721, CESifo.
    6. Brisbois, Ben W. & Spiegel, Jerry M. & Harris, Leila, 2019. "Health, environment and colonial legacies: Situating the science of pesticides, bananas and bodies in Ecuador," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 239(C).
    7. Zhaohua Wang & Bin Zhang & Dabo Guan, 2016. "Take responsibility for electronic-waste disposal," Nature, Nature, vol. 536(7614), pages 23-25, August.
    8. Dür, Andreas & Baccini, Leonardo & Elsig, Manfred, 2014. "The design of international trade agreements: introducing a new dataset," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 59179, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    9. Amanda Mascarelli, 2012. "Environment: Toxic effects," Nature, Nature, vol. 483(7389), pages 363-365, March.
    10. David Stuckler & Martin McKee & Shah Ebrahim & Sanjay Basu, 2012. "Manufacturing Epidemics: The Role of Global Producers in Increased Consumption of Unhealthy Commodities Including Processed Foods, Alcohol, and Tobacco," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 9(6), pages 1-8, June.
    11. Barlow, P. & Thow, A.M., 2021. "Neoliberal discourse, actor power, and the politics of nutrition policy: A qualitative analysis of informal challenges to nutrition labelling regulations at the World Trade Organization, 2007–2019," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 273(C).
    12. Lencucha, Raphael & Drope, Jeffrey & Labonte, Ronald, 2016. "Rhetoric and the law, or the law of rhetoric: How countries oppose novel tobacco control measures at the World Trade Organization," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 164(C), pages 100-107.
    13. Tania Voon, 2015. "Evidentiary Challenges for Public Health Regulation in International Trade and Investment Law," Journal of International Economic Law, Oxford University Press, vol. 18(4), pages 795-826.
    14. Louise Curran & Jappe Eckhardt, 2017. "Smoke screen? The globalization of production, transnational lobbying and the international political economy of plain tobacco packaging," Review of International Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 24(1), pages 87-118, January.
    15. Namin, S. & Xu, W. & Zhou, Y. & Beyer, K., 2020. "The legacy of the Home Owners’ Loan Corporation and the political ecology of urban trees and air pollution in the United States," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 246(C).
    16. Johan Lindeque & Steven McGuire, 2007. "The United States and trade disputes in the World Trade Organization: Hegemony constrained or confirmed?," Management International Review, Springer, vol. 47(5), pages 725-744, September.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Blog mentions

    As found by EconAcademics.org, the blog aggregator for Economics research:
    1. Journal round-up: Social Science & Medicine 275
      by Will Sullivan in The Academic Health Economists' Blog on 2021-05-10 06:00:13

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Piriu, Andreea Alexandra, 2021. "Trade Shocks, Job Insecurity and Individual Health," GLO Discussion Paper Series 992, Global Labor Organization (GLO).
    2. Barlow, Pepita & Gleeson, Deborah & O'Brien, Paula & Labonte, Ronald, 2022. "Industry influence over global alcohol policies via the World Trade Organization: a qualitative analysis of discussions on alcohol health warning labelling, 2010–19," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 113820, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Barlow, Pepita & Stuckler, David, 2021. "Globalization and health policy space: introducing the WTO health dataset of trade challenges to national health regulations at World Trade Organization, 1995-2016," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 108988, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    2. Barlow, P. & Thow, A.M., 2021. "Neoliberal discourse, actor power, and the politics of nutrition policy: A qualitative analysis of informal challenges to nutrition labelling regulations at the World Trade Organization, 2007–2019," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 273(C).
    3. Jappe Eckhardt & Hongyu Wang, 2021. "China's new generation trade agreements: Importing rules to lock in domestic reform?," Regulation & Governance, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 15(3), pages 581-597, July.
    4. Barlow, Pepita & Gleeson, Deborah & O'Brien, Paula & Labonte, Ronald, 2022. "Industry influence over global alcohol policies via the World Trade Organization: a qualitative analysis of discussions on alcohol health warning labelling, 2010–19," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 113820, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    5. Barlow, Pepita & Sanap, Rujuta & Garde, Amandine & Winters, L. Alan & Mabhala, Mzwandile A. & Thow, Anne Marie, 2022. "Reassessing the health impacts of trade and investment agreements: a systematic review of quantitative studies, 2016–20," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 113791, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    6. Métivier, Jeanne & Bacchetta, Marc & Bekkers, Eddy & Koopman, Robert Bernard, 2023. "International trade cooperation's impact on the world economy," WTO Staff Working Papers ERSD-2023-02, World Trade Organization (WTO), Economic Research and Statistics Division.
    7. Wani, Mr. Nassir Ul Haq & Rehman, Mr. Noor, 2017. "Determinants of FDI in Afghanistan: An Empirical Analysis," MPRA Paper 81975, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 03 May 2016.
    8. Rahel Aichele & Gabriel Felbermayr, 2016. "The Trans-Pacific Partnership Deal (TPP): What Are the Economic Consequences for In- and Outsiders?," CESifo Forum, ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, vol. 16(04), pages 53-64, January.
    9. Cornelius Hirsch & Harald Oberhofer, 2017. "Bilateral Trade Agreements and Trade Distortions in Agricultural Markets," FIW Working Paper series 176, FIW.
    10. Kox, Henk L.M. & Rojas Romasgosa, Hugo, 2019. "Gravity estimations with FDI bilateral data: Potential FDI effects of deep preferential trade agreements," MPRA Paper 96318, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    11. Wen Yue & Qingxia Lin & Siyu Xu, 2023. "Investment effect of regional trade agreements: an analysis from the perspective of heterogeneous agreement provisions," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.
    12. Mariam Camarero & Sergi Moliner & Cecilio Tamarit, 2021. "Is there a euro effect in the drivers of US FDI? New evidence using Bayesian model averaging techniques," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 157(4), pages 881-926, November.
    13. Matteo Fiorini & Bernard Hoekman, 2020. "EU services trade liberalization and economic regulation: Complements or substitutes?," The Review of International Organizations, Springer, vol. 15(1), pages 247-270, January.
    14. Felbermayr, Gabriel & Teti, Feodora & Yalcin, Erdal, 2019. "Rules of origin and the profitability of trade deflection," Journal of International Economics, Elsevier, vol. 121(C).
    15. Campi, Mercedes & Dueñas, Marco, 2019. "Intellectual property rights, trade agreements, and international trade," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 531-545.
    16. Sébastien Miroudot & Davide Rigo, 2019. "Preferential Trade Agreements and Multinational Production," RSCAS Working Papers 2019/14, European University Institute.
    17. Schneider, Sophie Therese, 2018. "North-South trade agreements and the quality of institutions: Panel data evidence," Hohenheim Discussion Papers in Business, Economics and Social Sciences 27-2018, University of Hohenheim, Faculty of Business, Economics and Social Sciences.
    18. Harald Oberhofer & Michael Pfaffermayr & Yvonne Wolfmayr, 2021. "Die Auswirkungen des Brexit auf Österreichs Wirtschaft," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 66782, April.
    19. Hinnerk Gnutzmann & Arevik Gnutzmann‐Mkrtchyan, 2019. "The silent success of customs unions," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 52(1), pages 178-224, February.
    20. Patricia AUGIER & Olivier CADOT & Marion DOVIS, 2016. "Regulatory harmonization, profits, and productivity: Firm-level evidence from Morocco," Working Papers P162, FERDI.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:socmed:v:275:y:2021:i:c:s0277953621001398. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/315/description#description .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.