Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 73
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 73
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
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Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
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Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
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Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Deprecated (16384): The ArrayAccess methods will be removed in 4.0.0.Use getParam(), getData() and getQuery() instead. - /home/brlfuser/public_html/src/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line: 74
 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php. [CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311]
Code Context


        trigger_error($message, E_USER_DEPRECATED);

    }
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 You can disable deprecation warnings by setting `Error.errorLevel` to `E_ALL & ~E_USER_DEPRECATED` in your config/app.php.'
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deprecationWarning - CORE/src/Core/functions.php, line 311
Cake\Http\ServerRequest::offsetGet() - CORE/src/Http/ServerRequest.php, line 2421
App\Controller\ArtileDetailController::printArticle() - APP/Controller/ArtileDetailController.php, line 74
Cake\Controller\Controller::invokeAction() - CORE/src/Controller/Controller.php, line 610
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::_invoke() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 120
Cake\Http\ActionDispatcher::dispatch() - CORE/src/Http/ActionDispatcher.php, line 94
Cake\Http\BaseApplication::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/BaseApplication.php, line 235
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\RoutingMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/RoutingMiddleware.php, line 162
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Routing\Middleware\AssetMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Routing/Middleware/AssetMiddleware.php, line 88
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Error\Middleware\ErrorHandlerMiddleware::__invoke() - CORE/src/Error/Middleware/ErrorHandlerMiddleware.php, line 96
Cake\Http\Runner::__invoke() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 65
Cake\Http\Runner::run() - CORE/src/Http/Runner.php, line 51
Cake\Http\Server::run() - CORE/src/Http/Server.php, line 98

Warning (512): Unable to emit headers. Headers sent in file=/home/brlfuser/public_html/vendor/cakephp/cakephp/src/Error/Debugger.php line=853 [CORE/src/Http/ResponseEmitter.php, line 48]
Code Context
            if (Configure::read('debug')) {

                trigger_error($message, E_USER_WARNING);

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		&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 20315,
		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;,
		&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
		&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
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Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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&lt;br /&gt;
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; 
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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&amp;nbsp;
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Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;br /&gt;
A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp; 
&lt;/div&gt;
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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-&lt;br /&gt;what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1&lt;br /&gt;2/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-&lt;br /&gt;aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system&lt;br /&gt;-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d&lt;br /&gt;ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot; title=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted&lt;br /&gt;ness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje&lt;br /&gt;e-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free&lt;br /&gt;-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot; title=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent&lt;br /&gt;-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040&lt;br /&gt;9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest&lt;br /&gt;-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl&lt;br /&gt;e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-&lt;br /&gt;wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-&lt;br /&gt;canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.&lt;br /&gt;html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati&lt;br /&gt;on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair&lt;br /&gt;person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed&lt;br /&gt;-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate&lt;br /&gt;nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid&lt;br /&gt;anand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: &lt;a href=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot; title=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot;&gt;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz&lt;br /&gt;k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta&lt;br /&gt;blets-pills.jpg&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;,
	&#039;lang&#039; =&gt; &#039;English&#039;,
	&#039;SITE_URL&#039; =&gt; &#039;https://im4change.in/&#039;,
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	&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 20315,
	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; 
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
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YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
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$articleid = (int) 20315
$metaTitle = &#039;NEWS ALERTS | SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;
$metaKeywords = &#039;Cancer,Health,novartis,generic drugs,patents&#039;
$metaDesc = &#039;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-&lt;br /&gt;what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1&lt;br /&gt;2/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-&lt;br /&gt;aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system&lt;br /&gt;-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d&lt;br /&gt;ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot; title=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted&lt;br /&gt;ness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje&lt;br /&gt;e-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free&lt;br /&gt;-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot; title=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent&lt;br /&gt;-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040&lt;br /&gt;9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest&lt;br /&gt;-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl&lt;br /&gt;e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-&lt;br /&gt;wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-&lt;br /&gt;canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.&lt;br /&gt;html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati&lt;br /&gt;on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair&lt;br /&gt;person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed&lt;br /&gt;-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate&lt;br /&gt;nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid&lt;br /&gt;anand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: &lt;a href=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot; title=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot;&gt;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz&lt;br /&gt;k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta&lt;br /&gt;blets-pills.jpg&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;
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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public..."/>
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                <strong>SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine</strong></h1>
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                <div align="justify">The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br /><br />Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br /><br />The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br /><br />The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br /><br />In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br /><br />The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /><br /><em>Further reading:<br /></em><br />Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br /><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-<br />what-you-need-to-know/</a><br /><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br /><a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf" title="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><br />A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf" title="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1<br />2/wg_pharma2902.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in" title="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br /><br /><a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in" title="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece" title="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-<br />aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br /><br /><em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece" title="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system<br />-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece </a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d<br />ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br /><br />A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br /><a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html" title="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted<br />ness-punjab.html</a><br /><br /><em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br /></em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje<br />e-battles-for-generic-drugs/</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/" title="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free<br />-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br /><br /></div><div align="justify">There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525" title="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br /></div><div align="justify"><br />A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br /><a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/" title="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent<br />-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040<br />9.html</a><br /><br />HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br /><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest<br />-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl<br />e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"></a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-<br />wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-<br />canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.<br />html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati<br />on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html" title="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair<br />person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed<br />-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate<br />nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid<br />anand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg" title="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz<br />k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta<br />blets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br /></div>               </font>
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		&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 20315,
		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;,
		&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
		&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
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Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;br /&gt;
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; 
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
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The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
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Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
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Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;br /&gt;
A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
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YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp; 
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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-&lt;br /&gt;what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1&lt;br /&gt;2/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-&lt;br /&gt;aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system&lt;br /&gt;-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d&lt;br /&gt;ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot; title=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted&lt;br /&gt;ness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje&lt;br /&gt;e-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free&lt;br /&gt;-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot; title=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent&lt;br /&gt;-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040&lt;br /&gt;9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest&lt;br /&gt;-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl&lt;br /&gt;e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-&lt;br /&gt;wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-&lt;br /&gt;canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.&lt;br /&gt;html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati&lt;br /&gt;on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair&lt;br /&gt;person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed&lt;br /&gt;-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate&lt;br /&gt;nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid&lt;br /&gt;anand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: &lt;a href=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot; title=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot;&gt;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz&lt;br /&gt;k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta&lt;br /&gt;blets-pills.jpg&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;,
	&#039;lang&#039; =&gt; &#039;English&#039;,
	&#039;SITE_URL&#039; =&gt; &#039;https://im4change.in/&#039;,
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	&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 20315,
	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; 
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
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YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
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$articleid = (int) 20315
$metaTitle = &#039;NEWS ALERTS | SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;
$metaKeywords = &#039;Cancer,Health,novartis,generic drugs,patents&#039;
$metaDesc = &#039;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-&lt;br /&gt;what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1&lt;br /&gt;2/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-&lt;br /&gt;aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system&lt;br /&gt;-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d&lt;br /&gt;ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot; title=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted&lt;br /&gt;ness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje&lt;br /&gt;e-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free&lt;br /&gt;-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot; title=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent&lt;br /&gt;-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040&lt;br /&gt;9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest&lt;br /&gt;-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl&lt;br /&gt;e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-&lt;br /&gt;wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-&lt;br /&gt;canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.&lt;br /&gt;html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati&lt;br /&gt;on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair&lt;br /&gt;person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed&lt;br /&gt;-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate&lt;br /&gt;nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid&lt;br /&gt;anand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; 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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public..."/>
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                <strong>SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine</strong></h1>
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                <div align="justify">The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br /><br />Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br /><br />The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br /><br />The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br /><br />In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br /><br />The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /><br /><em>Further reading:<br /></em><br />Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br /><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-<br />what-you-need-to-know/</a><br /><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br /><a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf" title="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><br />A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf" title="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1<br />2/wg_pharma2902.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in" title="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br /><br /><a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in" title="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece" title="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-<br />aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br /><br /><em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece" title="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system<br />-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece </a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d<br />ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br /><br />A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br /><a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html" title="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted<br />ness-punjab.html</a><br /><br /><em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br /></em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje<br />e-battles-for-generic-drugs/</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/" title="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free<br />-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br /><br /></div><div align="justify">There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525" title="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br /></div><div align="justify"><br />A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br /><a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/" title="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent<br />-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040<br />9.html</a><br /><br />HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br /><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest<br />-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl<br />e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"></a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-<br />wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-<br />canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.<br />html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati<br />on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html" title="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair<br />person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed<br />-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate<br />nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid<br />anand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg" title="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz<br />k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta<br />blets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br /></div>               </font>
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		&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 20315,
		&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;,
		&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
		&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
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Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;br /&gt;
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; 
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
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The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
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Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
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Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
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There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&lt;br /&gt;
A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
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YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
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Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
&amp;nbsp; 
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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...&#039;,
	&#039;disp&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-&lt;br /&gt;what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1&lt;br /&gt;2/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-&lt;br /&gt;aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system&lt;br /&gt;-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d&lt;br /&gt;ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot; title=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted&lt;br /&gt;ness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje&lt;br /&gt;e-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free&lt;br /&gt;-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot; title=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent&lt;br /&gt;-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040&lt;br /&gt;9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest&lt;br /&gt;-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl&lt;br /&gt;e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-&lt;br /&gt;wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-&lt;br /&gt;canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.&lt;br /&gt;html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati&lt;br /&gt;on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair&lt;br /&gt;person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed&lt;br /&gt;-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate&lt;br /&gt;nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid&lt;br /&gt;anand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Image Courtesy: &lt;a href=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot; title=&quot;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg&quot;&gt;http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz&lt;br /&gt;k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta&lt;br /&gt;blets-pills.jpg&lt;/a&gt; &lt;/strong&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&#039;,
	&#039;lang&#039; =&gt; &#039;English&#039;,
	&#039;SITE_URL&#039; =&gt; &#039;https://im4change.in/&#039;,
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	&#039;id&#039; =&gt; (int) 20315,
	&#039;title&#039; =&gt; &#039;SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;,
	&#039;subheading&#039; =&gt; &#039;&#039;,
	&#039;description&#039; =&gt; &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; 
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/em&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&amp;nbsp;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;
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&amp;nbsp;
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India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;
&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;
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&lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;
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YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;
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Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; &lt;br /&gt;
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$articleid = (int) 20315
$metaTitle = &#039;NEWS ALERTS | SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine&#039;
$metaKeywords = &#039;Cancer,Health,novartis,generic drugs,patents&#039;
$metaDesc = &#039;
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...&#039;
$disp = &#039;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&amp;rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &amp;ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &amp;ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&amp;rdquo; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;In addition, critics say that the state hasn&amp;rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. &lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&amp;rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&amp;nbsp;&amp;nbsp; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Further reading:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;br /&gt;Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-&lt;br /&gt;what-you-need-to-know/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Findings and recommendations by the government&amp;rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&quot;&gt;http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&amp;nbsp; &lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot; title=&quot;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf&quot;&gt;http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1&lt;br /&gt;2/wg_pharma2902.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.nppaindia.nic.in&quot;&gt;www.nppaindia.nic.in&lt;/a&gt; &amp;nbsp;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot; title=&quot;http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in&quot;&gt;www.janaushadhi.gov.in&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-&lt;br /&gt;aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot; title=&quot;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece&quot;&gt;http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system&lt;br /&gt;-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece &lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d&lt;br /&gt;ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot; title=&quot;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html&quot;&gt;http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted&lt;br /&gt;ness-punjab.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;em&gt;Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot; title=&quot;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/&quot;&gt;http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje&lt;br /&gt;e-battles-for-generic-drugs/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&quot;&gt;http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free&lt;br /&gt;-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot; title=&quot;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&quot;&gt;http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;br /&gt;A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:&lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot; title=&quot;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&quot;&gt;http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das &lt;br /&gt;The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent&lt;br /&gt;-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040&lt;br /&gt;9.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;br /&gt;HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, &lt;br /&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest&lt;br /&gt;-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl&lt;br /&gt;e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html&quot;&gt;&lt;/a&gt;Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-&lt;br /&gt;wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html &lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&amp;rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-&lt;br /&gt;canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.&lt;br /&gt;html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati&lt;br /&gt;on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html&lt;/a&gt;&amp;nbsp; &lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair&lt;br /&gt;person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed&lt;br /&gt;-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;br /&gt;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;&amp;nbsp;&lt;/div&gt;&lt;div align=&quot;justify&quot;&gt;Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, &lt;a href=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot; title=&quot;https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html&quot;&gt;http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate&lt;br /&gt;nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid&lt;br /&gt;anand-rajghatta-20265.html&lt;/a&gt; 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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public..."/>
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                <strong>SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine</strong></h1>
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                <div align="justify">The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br /><br />Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br /><br />The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br /><br />The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br /><br />In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br /><br />The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /><br /><em>Further reading:<br /></em><br />Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br /><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-<br />what-you-need-to-know/</a><br /><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br /><a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf" title="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><br />A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf" title="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1<br />2/wg_pharma2902.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in" title="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br /><br /><a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in" title="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece" title="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-<br />aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br /><br /><em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece" title="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system<br />-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece </a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d<br />ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br /><br />A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br /><a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html" title="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted<br />ness-punjab.html</a><br /><br /><em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br /></em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje<br />e-battles-for-generic-drugs/</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/" title="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free<br />-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br /><br /></div><div align="justify">There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525" title="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br /></div><div align="justify"><br />A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br /><a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/" title="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent<br />-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040<br />9.html</a><br /><br />HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br /><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest<br />-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl<br />e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"></a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-<br />wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-<br />canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.<br />html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati<br />on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html" title="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair<br />person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed<br />-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate<br />nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid<br />anand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg" title="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz<br />k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta<br />blets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br /></div>               </font>
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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br />
<br />
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br />
<br />
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br />
<br />
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br />
<br />
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br />
<br />
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br />
<br />
<em>Further reading:<br />
</em><br />
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br />
<a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/</a><br />
<a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br />
<a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
<br />
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; 
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br />
<br />
<em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br />
<a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece <br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br />
<br />
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br />
<a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html</a><br />
<br />
<em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br />
</em>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br />
<a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br />
<br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<br />
A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br />
<a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html</a><br />
<br />
HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br />
<a href="../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"><br />
</a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />
&nbsp; 
</div>
<div align="justify">
<strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br />
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	'metaTitle' => 'NEWS ALERTS | SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine',
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The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...',
	'disp' => '<div align="justify">The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br /><br />Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br /><br />The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br /><br />The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br /><br />In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br /><br />The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /><br /><em>Further reading:<br /></em><br />Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br /><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-<br />what-you-need-to-know/</a><br /><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br /><a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf" title="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><br />A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf" title="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1<br />2/wg_pharma2902.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in" title="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br /><br /><a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in" title="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece" title="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-<br />aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br /><br /><em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece" title="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system<br />-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece </a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d<br />ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br /><br />A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br /><a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html" title="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted<br />ness-punjab.html</a><br /><br /><em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br /></em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje<br />e-battles-for-generic-drugs/</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/" title="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free<br />-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br /><br /></div><div align="justify">There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525" title="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br /></div><div align="justify"><br />A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br /><a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/" title="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent<br />-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040<br />9.html</a><br /><br />HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br /><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest<br />-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl<br />e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"></a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-<br />wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-<br />canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.<br />html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati<br />on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html" title="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair<br />person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed<br />-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate<br />nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid<br />anand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg" title="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz<br />k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta<br />blets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br /></div>',
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	'title' => 'SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine',
	'subheading' => '',
	'description' => '<div align="justify">
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br />
<br />
Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br />
<br />
The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br />
<br />
The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br />
<br />
In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br />
<br />
The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br />
<br />
<em>Further reading:<br />
</em><br />
Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br />
<a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/</a><br />
<a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br />
<a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
<br />
A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; 
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br />
<br />
<em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br />
<a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece <br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br />
<br />
A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br />
<a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html</a><br />
<br />
<em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br />
</em>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/<br />
</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br />
<a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br />
<br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
<br />
A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br />
<a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />
The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html</a><br />
<br />
HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br />
<a href="../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a>
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
<a href="../latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"><br />
</a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="../interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br />
</div>
<div align="justify">
&nbsp;
</div>
<div align="justify">
Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="../latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />
&nbsp; 
</div>
<div align="justify">
<strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br />
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$articleid = (int) 20315
$metaTitle = 'NEWS ALERTS | SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine'
$metaKeywords = 'Cancer,Health,novartis,generic drugs,patents'
$metaDesc = '
The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public...'
$disp = '<div align="justify">The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis&rsquo; claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs &ndash; in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. <br /><br />Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. <br /><br />The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. <br /><br />The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be &ldquo;adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.&rdquo; <br /><br />In addition, critics say that the state hasn&rsquo;t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. <br /><br />The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India&rsquo;s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /><br /><em>Further reading:<br /></em><br />Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced<br /><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-what-you-need-to-know/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs-<br />what-you-need-to-know/</a><br /><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/"></a></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/" title="http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/">http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/</a> &nbsp;<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Findings and recommendations by the government&rsquo;s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010<br /><a href="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf" title="http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf">http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><br />A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><a href="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf" title="http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp12/wg_pharma2902.pdf">http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1<br />2/wg_pharma2902.pdf</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:<br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in" title="http://www.nppaindia.nic.in">www.nppaindia.nic.in</a> &nbsp;<br /><br /><a href="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in" title="http://www.janaushadhi.gov.in">www.janaushadhi.gov.in</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece" title="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece">http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan-<br />aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece</a><br /><br /><em>The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:</em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece" title="http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece">http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system<br />-in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece </a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-day-2012-free-drugs-for-all/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d<br />ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/</a><br /><br />A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab<br /><a href="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html" title="http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebtedness-punjab.html">http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted<br />ness-punjab.html</a><br /><br /><em>Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:<br /></em></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/" title="http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerjee-battles-for-generic-drugs/">http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje<br />e-battles-for-generic-drugs/</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012<br /><a href="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/" title="http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/">http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free<br />-drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/</a><br /><br /></div><div align="justify">There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 <br /></div><div align="justify"><a href="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525" title="http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525">http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525</a><br /></div><div align="justify"><br />A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working:<br /><a href="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/" title="http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/">http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das <br />The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/indian-patent-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-20409.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent<br />-rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040<br />9.html</a><br /><br />HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, <br /><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html">The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest<br />-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl<br />e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html</a></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify"><a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordable-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html"></a>Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma-<br />wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html </a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">EU, Australia, Canada may follow India&rsquo;s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia-<br />canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307.<br />html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/when-innovation-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati<br />on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html</a>&nbsp; <br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html" title="https://im4change.in/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chairperson-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html">http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair<br />person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed<br />-by-sushmi-dey-20267.html</a><br /></div><div align="justify">&nbsp;</div><div align="justify">Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, <a href="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html" title="https://im4change.in/latest-news-updates/novartis-patent-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chidanand-rajghatta-20265.html">http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate<br />nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid<br />anand-rajghatta-20265.html</a> <br />&nbsp; </div><div align="justify"><strong>Image Courtesy: <a href="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg" title="http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietruszk1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-tablets-pills.jpg">http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz<br />k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta<br />blets-pills.jpg</a> </strong><br /></div>'
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SC’s Novartis judgement renews focus on accessible medicine

The recent Supreme Court judgment dismissing pharma giant Novartis’ claim for patent protections in India for its award-winning and prohibitively priced anti-leukemia drug Glivec has renewed the focus on accessibly-priced drugs – in particular the failure of the Indian public healthcare system and health policy to ensure affordable drugs for all. Studies show that as much as 70% of health spending in India comes from out-of-pocket payments, with 50-80% of this expenditure being for the purchase of drugs. In fact, the Ministry for Rural Development says that health expenses are the single largest driver of indebtedness for rural Indians. The crushing costs for individual patients and families are particularly ironic when one considers the fact that the Rs 100,000 crore Indian pharmaceutical industry is not just the 3rd largest in the world but is also turning into the chemist for the global south, with exports of low-priced generics amounting to over Rs 42,000 crore each year. The state currently spends just 0.1% of its GDP (Rs 6000 crores) on drug procurement. A government report argues that just increasing this to 0.5% of GDP would be “adequate to supply essential medicines free to everyone, distributed through public and private channels.” In addition, critics say that the state hasn’t made adequate efforts to regulate domestic drug prices and the operations of multinational pharma companies. It has also failed to build an extensive public network of fair-priced chemist shops under the still-born Jan Aushadhi scheme. The 12th Plan (2013-17) speaks of a renewed commitment to public health but it remains to be seen if policymakers can turn India’s growing domestic tide of medicines beyond reach.     Further reading: Basic backgrounders on generics and why they are lesser priced http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/generic-drugs- what-you-need-to-know/ http://www.who.int/trade/glossary/story034/en/       Findings and recommendations by the government’s High Level Expert Group (HLEG) on Universal Health Coverage (UHC), which submitted its report in October 2010 http://uhc-india.org/reports/hleg_report_chapter_3.pdf   A report on meeting the challenges facing Indian pharma:  http://planningcommission.nic.in/aboutus/committee/wrkgrp1 2/wg_pharma2902.pdf     The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy (NPPP-2012) which was notified in November 2012 and seeks to regulate prices of 348 essential medicines, and the Jan Aushadhi scheme for a network of public fair-price medicine shops:   www.nppaindia.nic.in   www.janaushadhi.gov.in   Low-cost Jan Aushadhi stores to be re-invented, The Hindu Business Line, July 27 2012 http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/marketing/lowcost-jan- aushadhi-stores-to-be-reinvented/article3693097.ece The implications of a failing public healthcare system for rural Indians:   Public health system in India has collapsed: Ramesh, The Hindu, 16 November, 2012 http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/public-health-system -in-india-has-collapsed-ramesh/article4101836.ece     Free drugs for all?-Nirmalya Dutta, 30 November, 2012,  http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/independence-d ay-2012-free-drugs-for-all/ A paper exploring the links between rural indebtedness and healthcare costs in Gurdaspur and Amritsar districts of Punjab http://www.epw.in/commentary/rural-healthcare-and-indebted ness-punjab.html Initiatives by state governments in Rajasthan and West Bengal to provide access to affordable generic drugs:   Mamata Banerjee battles for generic drugs, 16 March, 2012 http://health.india.com/diseases-conditions/mamata-banerje e-battles-for-generic-drugs/   India Poised to Supply Free Drugs to 1.2 Billion People-Zofeen Ebrahim, 8 November, 2012 http://www.ipsnews.net/2012/11/india-poised-to-supply-free -drugs-to-1-2-billion-people/ There Is A cure -Pragya Singh, Outlook, 27 July, 2009 http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?250525 A field report on how the National Health Insurance system is working: http://www.who.int/bulletin/volumes/88/7/10-020710/en/   Indian patent rulings may face legal heat internationally -Soma Das The Economic Times, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/indian-patent -rulings-may-face-legal-heat-internationally-soma-das-2040 9.html HIV, cancer patients seek access to affordable medicines-Aarti Dhar, The Hindu, 11 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest -news-updates/hiv-cancer-patients-seek-access-to-affordabl e-medicines-aarti-dhar-20403.html   Natco Pharma wins cancer drug case-R Sivaraman, The Hindu, 4 March, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/natco-pharma- wins-cancer-drug-case-r-sivaraman-19744.html   EU, Australia, Canada may follow India’s Patent Law -Divya Rajagopal, The Economic Times, 4 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/eu-australia- canada-may-follow-indias-patent-law-divya-rajagopal-20307. html   When innovation is under threat-Swati Piramal, The Indian Express, 2 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/when-innovati on-is-under-threat-swati-piramal-20286.html    YK Sapru, founder chairperson of Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) interviewed by Sushmi Dey, The Business Standard, 3 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/interviews/yk-sapru-founder-chair person-of-cancer-patients-aid-association-cpaa-interviewed -by-sushmi-dey-20267.html   Novartis patent case: Glivec developer Brian Druker hails SC ruling- Chidanand Rajghatta, The Economic Times, 3 April, 2013, http://www.im4change.org/latest-news-updates/novartis-pate nt-case-glivec-developer-brian-druker-hails-sc-ruling-chid anand-rajghatta-20265.html   Image Courtesy: http://us.123rf.com/400wm/400/400/janpietruszk/janpietrusz k1004/janpietruszk100400256/7383108-ekg-drugs-medicines-ta blets-pills.jpg