𝑻𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒂

Ailin Vilches Arguello, The Algemeiner An Irish medical association’s campaign to boycott Teva Pharmaceuticals, one of Israel’s largest drugmakers, could have consequences for patients across Ireland, where the company’s medicines account for one in every eight prescriptions. The Irish Hospital Consultants Association (IHCA), a representative body for hospital-based medical specialists and consultants, passed a motion this week calling on its members to avoid prescribing, administering, or using products made by Teva Pharmaceuticals when clinically suitable alternatives are available, provided doing so does not endanger patients, disrupt ongoing treatment, or compromise medical outcomes. The Irish Examiner first reported the story. Under the newly adopted motion, the association also pledged to stand behind clinicians who refuse to use Teva products for ethical reasons, insisting they should not face professional repercussions, intimidation, or disciplinary measures for making such decisions in good faith. IHCA pointed to “significant ethical concern and international scrutiny” surrounding Teva Pharmaceuticals amid the ongoing war in Gaza, placing its decision within broader anti-Israel boycott efforts and international campaigns to isolate the Jewish state. “These concerns have led healthcare professionals in Ireland and internationally to question the continued use and procurement of Teva products where clinically appropriate alternatives are available,” IHCA said in a statement. Proposed by Thomas Donnelly, a consultant at Children’s Health Ireland, the motion also calls for ethical criteria to become a central part of pharmaceutical purchasing decisions across Irish hospitals and healthcare institutions, potentially extending the boycott’s reach beyond individual clinicians. “As a pediatric orthopedic surgeon, I have treated families from Gaza whose injuries are devastating and will require lifelong management. Several of these patients have lost family members in the same explosions that have resulted in amputations or other irreparable damage,” Donnelly said in a statement. “To then contemplate that products I prescribe or administer could, even indirectly, contribute to further bombardments is unconscionable,” he continued. “Where a clinically appropriate alternative exists, I cannot in good conscience use Teva Pharmaceuticals products.” Teva Ireland is one of the largest suppliers of prescription medicines to Ireland’s Health Service Executive (HSE), the country’s publicly funded healthcare system, and a major provider to pharmacies nationwide — meaning efforts to discourage its products could have consequences for patients who rely on affordable, readily available treatments. According to industry estimates, Teva’s generic medicines saved Ireland approximately $1.9 billion between 2013 and 2018, reflecting the scale of their economic impact on the country. Since the start of the war in Gaza, Teva Pharmaceuticals has faced mounting pressure from the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which has increasingly targeted the Israeli drugmaker as part of its broader international campaign to economically isolate Israel and companies associated with it. Last month, the UK’s Royal College of Nursing, which represents nurses and nursing staff, and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, the professional body for pharmacists, both ended their partnerships with Teva UK, citing conflicts between the company’s activities and their institutional values. Like in Ireland, Teva supplies medicines used in approximately one in every eight prescriptions in the UK, with the company estimating that its products save the country’s National Health Service (NHS) approximately $3.2 billion annually. UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI), a legal advocacy organization that challenges anti-Israel discrimination and campaigns, sharply condemned the decisions, warning that they could violate charity law, breach the organizations’ legal duties, and undermine requirements for political neutrality.