Novartis threatens Indian generic drug industry
Novartis, a Swiss Multinational pharmaceutical company operating in India, has been involved in challenging the laws of our country through two petitions filed in the Chennai High Court. Clearly, the challenges posed by Novartis to the Indian law constitute an attempt to profiteer at the expense of tens of thousands of poor and sick patients. It is also an attempt to open the floodgates for other drug companies so that they to can apply for trivial patents. The consequences will not be limited just to India. Today India is known globally as the Pharmacy of the Third World, because Indian companies export cheaper versions of patented drugs to over 150 countries.
PHM Letter to UNITAID Board on Patent Pool Plan
We understand that the UNITAID’s Executive Board is to meet on 14-15th December to finalise the Patent Pool implementation plan.
We are writing to you on behalf of the Peoples Health Movement – the largest global network of Civil Society Organisations working on health and access to health care, with a presence in over 80 countries across the globe. We wish to present to you some concerns regarding the Implementation Plan for the UNITAID Patent Pool.
Is the World Health Summit a parallel decision-making structure for global health?
The PHM has a series of concerns about the World Health Summit (WHS) which is being planned as an annual event. The first WHS will be held in Berlin (October 14th - 18th, 2009).
PHM believes that, rather than creating a parallel policy forum, WHO needs to be supported as the coordinating body of global health efforts.
