CSR

India rules against Novartis on patent petition

The decision by an Indian court to reject a petition from Novartis, the pharmaceutical company, challenging a law that allows the country to refuse a patent for an existing medicine not deemed truly innovative, has been hailed as an important victory for global public health by Oxfam and the Interfaith Center on Corporate Responsibility (ICCR).

Novartis originally filed its petition over the denial of a patent for Glivec, a cancer drug, despite one having been granted in nearly 40 other countries. Novartis also noted that earlier this year the World Trade Organization (WTO) advised India to strengthen its intellectual property rights system.

However, Oxfam and the ICCR argued that the court's decision protects India's role as the leading provider of affordable medicines to people who depend on them for survival. They stated that more than two-thirds of generic medicines produced in India are exported to developing countries at a fraction of the cost of patented brands, and argued that Novartis and the pharmaceutical industry have been sent a clear message to respect developing countries' legal right to use WTO trade-related intellectual property safeguards to strike a fair balance between protecting public health and intellectual property.

Novartis suggested the court's decision may have long-term negative consequences for medicine research and development for patients in India and abroad. Paul Herrling, Novartis head of corporate research, argued effective patent systems are vital to stimulate long-term research and development efforts. "Medical progress occurs through incremental innovation. If Indian patent law does not recognise these important advances, patients will be denied new and better medicines".

September 2007