-The Telegraph New Delhi: A health consortium today questioned a decision by Delhi High Court earlier this week to quash the Centre's ban on 344 cocktails of two or more medicines and urged doctors across the country to stop prescribing them. The Jan Swasthya Abhiyan (JSA), the Indian section of the global People's Health Movement, said it was shocked at the judgment because there was "no scientific rationale" for the continued use...
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Demonetisation: Politics trumps economics -Deepak Nayyar
-Livemint.com The possible macroeconomic consequences of demonetisation are cause for concern as cash is the lifeblood of the economy It is exactly one month since Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the decision that Rs.500 and Rs.1,000 notes would cease to be legal tender acceptable for payments in settlement of transactions. There was some provision for exchange or deposit of old notes at banks, but with specified limits on sums and time. The past...
More »Validation of India's drug patent policy -Latha Jishnu
-Down to Earth A high level UN panel on Access to Medicines wants members to make full use of TRIPS flexibilities to protect public health If ever India needed a clear endorsement of its laws on intellectual property rights (IPRs) and their application in meeting public health priorities, it has come from the highest quarters. The report of the UN Secretary General’s High Level Panel (HLP) on Access to Medicines has, directly...
More »Generics vs big pharma, reloaded -Shamnad Basheer
-The Hindu The proposal to extend the time limit for State-level drug regulatory approvals from four to 10 years could hit the generics market In a scathing letter to the Government of India, the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) took issue with what it considered to be a backdoor extension for data exclusivity norms in the country. It pointed to the recent government proposal to change the four-year time limit for State-level drug...
More »Not consulted on scrapping drug pricing agency: Chairman -Vidya Krishnan
-The Hindu New Delhi: Days after it was revealed that the Centre is likely to dismantle the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Agency (NPPA), its chairman said the decision was ‘rushed’ and the agency was not consulted. “There were two meetings and the NPPA was not a party to them. Both meetings were held at short notice. This has been a rushed decision. For any policy change, there needs to be consultation. I understand...
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