I’d like to introduce a guest post from Ranga Iyer, former MD of Wyeth Limited and a drug industry veteran. He is currently an independent advisor to Indian and foreign drug companies on strategy, policy, as also mergers and acquisitions. In 2009, Ranga, then president of the Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India, was ranked the 33rd most influential pharma leader in the world by UK’s World Pharmaceutical Frontiers. While this blog has welcomed the compulsory licence issued by the Patent Office to Natco, Ranga has raised some strong arguments against. The views expressed are personal and do not reflect those of any organisation that he has professional relationships with.
Media and civil society have hailed the Indian Patent Office’s decision to grant a compulsory licence to Natco to make a generic of Bayer’s liver and kidney cancer drug Nexavar. But there is more than one reason why this licence will hurt innovation while doing little to enhance affordability. Continue reading “Guest post : Why the compulsory licence to Natco is a bad idea”