Malaysia seeking compulsory rights

The Malaysian government is seeking the right to import any patented drug, and also to produce it locally if it is in the national interest or use is for natural disasters or non-profit purposes, according to Health Minister Chua Soi Lek. He added that the country reserved the right to compulsory licensing under the Patent Act.

At a press conference he said: "we want to exercise our rights if a certain drug is important to us, and the right to compulsory licensing is among the topics of discussions in the Free Trade Agreement talks with the USA. Drug prices would not be affected through the country's exercising of its rights, but it would give intellectual property protection to the local industry."

For example, he noted, these could include the mostly patented antiretroviral drugs for HIV/AIDS patients. "Malaysia began importing the drugs from India in 2004 and managed to bring down prices from 1,200 ringgits ($350.64)/month for a patient to 200 ringgits and, recently, to150 ringgits/month as the drugs were now produced in Malaysia," said the Health Minister.