Drug launches, new permissions should be made public, say pharma MNCs

Dec 13,2023

The Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI), which represents prominent multinational pharma companies, has urged India's drug controller to make new launches and new drug permissions of Indian pharma companies open to the public, a move that could help them track potential infringers thereby obtaining timely interim injunction from the courts. The proposal, if implemented, could hurt Indian pharma companies.

In a recent meeting held by the drug controller on global clinical trials, the OPPI sought from the government a notification system through the drug regulatory authority's digital portal-SUGAM. It has asked for linking of the SUGAM Portal at Centre and state levels and, then, making public the non-commercial information in respect of the filed/pending applications and the approvals granted, it said.

According to an executive with a lobby group representing Indian pharma companies, asking to notify all the applications on the portal for all to see will help the multinational companies as in case of any product nearing expiry of patent, they can seek an injunction from the court.

"The OPPI believes that it doesn't harm the interest of an Indian company as their plea is that if any multinational company has an intellectual property and some other company is trespassing, they have a right to know," said a person who attended the meeting.

Source: Pharma