As reported in in-Pharma Technologist.com, the Indian Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) is considering greater compulsory licensing provisions for drug makers. These provisions could be applied, if necessary, to 3rd party drug (MNC) companies that takeover local generic competitors. Indian regulators fear the upsurge in this type of activity in the recent past could result in pricing local populations out of the market in key therapeutic areas -- like cancer treatments where pricing often makes drugs too expensive for patients to access.
DIPP is careful to emphasize that compulsory measures would be used "when a single critical drug is either unavailable per se or unavailable at reasonably affordable prices". DIPP is inviting public comment on when compulsory measure should be invoked and how compensatory royalties should be handled.
Posted by Bruce Lehr August 25th 2010.
More on this story from the Pharmalot blog
http://www.pharmalot.com/2010/08/india-weighs-compulsory-licensing-to-thwart-ma/
Posted by: bigredbruce | 08/26/2010 at 11:09 AM