-The Hindu Chennai: With U.S Trade Representative Michael Froman set to announce a trade enforcement action tied to India, the highly influential U.S Chamber of Commerce has lashed out at India's recent pattern of pharma patent denials, pointing out that the country's actions "are not about access to medicine." In the case of Swiss drug-maker Novartis, whose cancer drug's patent protections were dismissed by the Supreme Court, the chamber has argued that...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The US Chamber of Commerce has advised its government to ratchet up pressure on India over intellectual property rights and prevent it from producing cheap generic versions of medicines under patent protection. In a recommendation to the United States Trade Representative (USTR), the chamber requested it to label India as a Priority Foreign Country, a tag which is given to the worst offenders of patent rights. The only...

-Down to Earth Advisory issued by health officials highlights complaints regarding excessive charges and delayed service To make private hospitals and nursing homes in Delhi more patient-friendly, the Aam Adami Party (AAP) government has issued a strict advisory to these establishments. It instructs all such establishments to display charges, compulsorily give primary aid in cases of emergency, and asks them to prescribe generic medicines. In the advisory issued on February 5, health officials...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The new draft protocol for clinical trials of drugs, on the lines suggested by the Supreme Court, is making it difficult for global drug manufacturers to find subjects for testing new chemical compositions. The protocol has made it mandatory for companies intending to conduct human trials of drugs to video-record the free consent of Patients to be part of the trial. It also mandates them to...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: It is well known that quality of life greatly varies amongst different states within India. Some states have greater industrial or agricultural output, higher income levels, better educational and health indicators while others are still struggling with backwardness. But what is much less known is that within states too there are wide and astonishing variations. State level averages often hide huge and unconscionable disparity on...