Thailand Health Ministry change could mean fewer CLs

The change of Health Minister in Thailand appears, at least initially, to indicate a change in policy regarding the compulsory licensing of patented drugs. According to the Bangkok Post, the new Public Health Minister, Chaiya Sasomsab, has decided to "review" his predecessor's final decision to press ahead with patent-breaking moves for four oncology drugs.

Mr Chaiya acknowledged that the overriding of the intellectual property rights of foreign drug majors, while popular among many people in Thailand and backed by foreign activist groups, "has advantages and disadvantages." He also indicated that the high-profile policy of confrontation with foreign drugmakers may be downscaled, after telling the local media that he would be concentrating on reforming the pay structures of physicians and nursing staff.

The four drugs under threat of compulsory licensing are produced by three drug majors (Marketletters passim): Swizerland-headquarted Novartis' aromatase inhibitor Femara (letrozole) for breast cancer and leukemia drug Glivec/Gleevec (imatinib), fellow Swiss Roche-marketed lung cancer agent Tarceva (erlotinib) and the France-based Sanofi-Aventis' breast and lung cancer agent Taxotere (docetaxel).