The Malaysian drug industry organization, the MPTMA, has called for thecreation of special courts to hear drug patent-related issues, in order to ensure the prompt sentencing of offenders and adequate attention to the issues.
The MPTMA said that strict enforcement was needed to prevent patent infringement and argued that the maximum limit, currently five versions, allowed on the number of generic copies marketed in Malaysia should be abolished to allow a free market economy in line with the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade. Both imported and locally-made generics should be allowed to compete freely with each other in the local market.
Also, the MPTMA wants the government to remove import duties on diagnostic strips for diabetes screening as soon as possible in order to control the cost. The current 10% tax imposed on cif items in the 1997 budget would result in a price hike, the MPTMA argues, which would have to be passed on to the consumer.
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