Justifying a morally permissible breach of contract: kantian ethics, nozickian justice, and vaccine patents.
Med Health Care Philos
; 26(4): 573-581, 2023 Dec.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37479910
Although some have argued that COVID-19 vaccine patents are morally justified, a broader argument on the morality of breaching contracts is necessary. This article explores the ethics of breaching unfair contracts and argues that it is morally justified to breach contracts with pharmaceutical companies concerning vaccine patents. I offer two arguments to support this view. Firstly, contracts may be breachable in some situations. The ones I point out are that contracts can be broken when the costs of not violating vaccine patents are too high or when the process for agreement is not fair, or when an urgent ethical issue needs to be addressed and it is possible to compensate the other party for their loss. Secondly, I argue that because the contracts with the pharmaceutical companies do not treat people as ends in themselves, there is no moral obligation to respect them.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Justiça Social
/
Vacinas contra COVID-19
Limite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2023
Tipo de documento:
Article