Rs 1.2 lakh: Cost of life?

Are patents and intellectual property rights related to life-saving drugs more important than the right to life? This issue has reached the Supreme Court. The Cancer Patients Aid Association (CPAA) has filed a public interest litigation (PIL) against the concept of exclusive marketing rights (EMR) and violation of right to health and equality of people suffering from Chronic Myeloid Leukemia (CML).

CPAA has, in particular, challenged the EMR being given to pharma giant Novartis AG for the drug Gleevec. This contains a beta crystalline form compound Imatinib Meyslate, used to treat CML patients. Thanks to the EMR, access to the drug has been denied to others. Gleevec is sold by Novartis AG at Rs 1.2 lakh for around 90 tablets per month, while there are nine other manufacturers which produce the drugâ??s generic version. This can treat the same cancer at Rs 9,000 to Rs 12,000 per month. However, because of the EMR, these companies are now under court injunction against producing the drug.

Research reveals that India has 24,000 new CML patients annually, 18,000 of whom die due to non-affordability of drugs. “We were able to save 30 patients with generic drugs, though their prices are also too high. We have 300 patients on the waiting list,” says Y K Sapru, CPAA chairman. The petition stresses on the World Trade Organisation (WTO) stand that pharma patents can be waived by countries facing national calamities. Since only a fraction of the Indian population can afford this drug, the PIL is seeking an order directing the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority to make drugs containing Imatinib Mesylate affordable. “It can come under the Essential Commodities Act,” suggests Alka Kapadia, CPAA executive director.