Read the initial assessment issued by the Dutch NCP – 17 July 2015

In March 2015, the Dutch NCP received a request for review from Mr. Bart Stapert regarding alleged human rights impacts by Mylan N.V. in respect of the manufacture of rocuronium bromide and links to lethal injection execution through sales of the generic medicine in the United States.

Mr. Bart Stapert is an attorney with expertise in the defense of capital punishment cases. In the submission he alleges that Mylan’s failure to restrict the sale of its products to prisons in the United States risks enabling the execution of prisoners using rocuronium bromide in violation of their right to life and, potentially, their right not to be subjected to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. The submission refers to alleged non-observance of the General Policies chapter and the commentary on Human Rights in the Guidelines.

In the view of Mr. Bart Stapert, Mylan should acknowledge the risk that without distribution controls in place its medicines may be purchased by prisons in the United States and used to execute prisoners, investigate what distribution controls it may impose, take swift action to implement comprehensive distribution controls, try to prevent the use of any Mylan medicines which may already have been sold to prisons and publish a policy statement confirming Mylan’s commitment to human rights, in particular to the human rights abuses associated with the use of medicines in lethal injection executions.

On 21 April 2015, Mylan submitted an initial response following the submission by Mr. Bart Stapert concerning the issues raised in this specific instance. The company states that it has never delivered, marketed or distributed rocuronium bromide for use in lethal executions, nor received or filed an order from any prison or other entity for use of the medicine in connection with a lethal injection. The company also challenged the jurisdiction of the Dutch NCP stating that the submission ought to be heard by the US NCP. Furthermore, the company contends that the demanded measures to be taken are beyond its control and that the issue is more one of ethical and public policy debate.

The initial assessment of the Dutch NCP concludes that the issues raised merit further consideration and the Dutch NCP therefore accepts the specific instance and offers its good offices to both parties. The Dutch NCP notes that although in principle a notification should be filed at the NCP where the alleged problems are occurring (in this instance the United States), the NCP has consulted with the US NCP and agreed that the Dutch NCP will handle this specific instance to affect change at the highest corporate entity in the Netherlands.