China Revises Patent Law in Fight for Cheaper Drugs

The amended law allows the country to issue compulsory licences to eligible companies to produce generic versions of patented drugs during state emergencies, or unusual circumstances, or in the interests of the public.

China has amended parts of its intellectual property laws to allow its pharmaceutical manufacturers to make cheap copies of medicines still under patent protection, according to Reuters.

The Chinese move comes within months of a similar move by India, which granted a compulsory licence in March to Natco Pharma to manufacture Bayer’s cancer drug Nexavar.

The amended Chinese patent law allows the country to issue compulsory licences to eligible companies to produce generic versions of patented drugs during state emergencies, or unusual circumstances, or in the interests of the public.

'The revised version of Measures for the Compulsory Licensing for Patent Implementation came into effect from 1