Economy TPP

A longshoreman readies a shipping container at the Port of Los Angeles. International trade under the Trans-Pacific Partnership pact, which is aimed at opening up new opportunities, does not contain protections for American health costs, jobs and food safety, the writers argue.

(AP files)

Vincent Gregory and Dick Long

Vincent Gregory, D-Lathrup Village, is the lead Democrat on the Senate Appropriations Committee. He represents the 11th Michigan Senate District. Dick Long, a Democratic Party official in Oakland County and a retiree who worked 48 years working at General Motors, is president of the Michigan Chapter of the Alliance for Retired Americans.

By State Sen. Vincent Gregory and Dick Long

The purpose of the Trans-Pacific Partnership is a noble one. Our government hopes the 12-country pact will open up new economic opportunities, ensure basic labor rights, promote environmental stewardship, protect intellectual property, create high-standards trade rules -- and more. Once finalized, this agreement will regulate about 40 percent of the world's economy.

But in reality, it is a morass of complicated and secretive agreements that could threaten the U.S. economy and place its most vulnerable citizens in harm's way. As it stands, the TPP fails to levy protections for American citizens, particularly when it comes to health care, financial security and food safety.



Right now, the TPP contains lengthy data-exclusivity windows for Big Pharma, which makes it more difficult for competing manufacturers to obtain the research necessary to develop specialty medications, and it weakens the government's ability to limit drug costs. These drugs, some of which can cost up to $400,000 annually, are used to treat illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and different forms of cancer.



The problems don't stop with prescription drugs, either. Similar provisions exist for medical devices, opening up the possibility of patenting a surgical procedure and thereby increasing its cost. Moreover, the TPP contains sneaky details allowing corporations and their subsidiaries to seek and obtain compensation from public programs that offer medication and supplies at below-market pricing -- like Medicaid and Medicare. Millions of Michiganders rely on both programs to survive.



Locking in these protections makes it all but inevitable that seniors, disabled Americans and the already impoverished will be forced to pay higher prices for desperately needed care.



And as Americans would pay more to keep their families healthy, the TPP also would provide protections -- and in some cases incentives -- to corporations that send manufacturing and service-related jobs offshore. Previous trade agreements have removed millions of jobs from our economy, resulting in $600 billion in lost wages and an annual loss of $37 billion in Social Security revenue.



After all, why would a company choose to locate in the U.S. when they can pay a fraction of our minimum wage in another country? Michigan, which boasts a highly skilled manufacturing workforce poised to take on America's next generation of manufacturing needs, stands to lose the most from this flawed arrangement.



The TPP even affects the food we eat and gives foreign corporations the right to challenge our food safety standards, pesticide regulations and food labeling requirements as "trade barriers." When you consider the fact that the FDA already detains hundreds of seafood exports from TPP countries due to salmonella, E. coli, methylmercury and drug residues, this becomes doubly worrisome. The TPP will greatly expand the amount of food imports we accept, making it even more challenging for a swamped FDA -- that currently can only inspect 1 percent of imports -- to do its job.



The TPP doesn't make good fiscal sense for America or for the state of Michigan. So on behalf of Michigan citizens, Sen. Gregory recently introduced a resolution urging the U.S. Senate to oppose the TPP.



Free trade agreements should be more inclusive of all affected parties, and that means listening to the voices of blue collar workers, farmers, small businesses, families and communities. We must address their interests first in order to fully strengthen our economy, reduce income inequality and promote sustainable growth. Lawmakers' job is to work for the people of this great country -- not corporations.

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