The allotment for the health sector during the 12th Plan
had been enhanced three times over the previous Plan allocation to handle
complex challenges.
The outlay in the 12th Plan had been fixed at Rs.
3-lakh crore, which was 1.95 % of the GDP. During the last Plan period, the
sector had got Rs. 89,265 crore.
Free generic drugs would be provided through public hospitals to
help “reduce out-of-pocket expenditure of the poor” on health.
The plan will emphasize on nutrition, safe
drinking water, sanitation, housing and education, particularly education of
the girl child, as they were increasingly being underlined as social
determinants of health.
What is a Generic Drug?
As per the definition from WHO (World Health
Organization):
§ A generic drug is a pharmaceutical product, usually
intended to be interchangeable with an innovator product, that is manufactured
without a licence from the innovator company and marketed after the expiry date
of the patent or other exclusive rights.
§ Non-Proprietary: Generic
drugs are marketed under a non-proprietary or approved name rather than a
proprietary or brand name.
§ Cheaper but as effective: Generic drugs are frequently as effective as, but
much cheaper than, brand-name drugs. For example, paracetamol is a chemical
ingredient found in a number of brand-name painkillers, but is also sold as a
generic drug (not under a brand name).
§ Even the poorest in country can access: Because of their low price, generic drugs are often
the only medicines that the poorest can access.
§ The TRIPS (Trade-Related
Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) agreement does not prevent
governments from requiring accurate labelling or allowing generic substitution.
Indeed, it is argued that competition b/w drug companies and generic producers
has been more effective than negotiations with drug companies in reducing the
cost of drugs, in particular those used to treat HIV/AIDS.
A brand name is a name given to a drug by the
manufacturer. The use of the name is reserved exclusively for its owner.
What is then a Counterfeit drug/medicine ?
§ A Counterfeit medicine is medicine that is deliberately
and fraudulently mislabelled with respect to identity and/or source.
Counterfeiting can apply to both branded and generic products.
§ Counterfeit products may include products with the
correct ingredients or the wrong ingredients, lacking active ingredients, with
incorrect quantities of active ingredients, or fake packaging.
When can a Generic Drug be produced ?
A generic drug can be produced when a
pharmaceutical company first markets a drug, it is usually under a patent that,
until it expires, allows only the pharmaceutical company that developed the
drug (or its licensees) to sell it. Generic drugs can be produced without
patent infringement for drugs where:
1.
the patent has expired, or
2.
the generic company certifies the brand
company’s patents are either invalid, unenforceable or will not be infringed,
or
3.
for drugs which have never held
patents, or
4.
in countries where the drug does not
have current patent protection.
Lifetime of a patent varies from country to
country; but usually an expired patent can’t be renewed.
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