Thailand's GPO: CVD and ARV copycats plan

Thailand's Government Pharmaceutical Organization has announced plans to begin production of generic versions of drugs which have been the object of the country's compulsory licensing program (Marketletters passim). The move completes the efforts of the former military-backed regime to cut the price of branded drugs in Thailand, a policy which, despite initial signs of being reviewed, appears to remain broadly intact with the new democratically-elected administration (Marketletters March 17 and 24).

According to the Bangkok Post, the GPO's managing director Witit Artavatkun said that imports of two antiretroviral drugs, efavirenz and the combination lopinavir/ritonavir would no longer be required. These were previously marketed in Thailand as Stocrin and Aluvia by, respectively, US drug majors Merck & Co and Abbott Laboratories.

A third drug, the cardiovascular medicine clopidogrel, sold as Plavix by France's Sanofi-Aventis and the USA's Bristol-Myers Squibb, is also part of the GPO's new production plans. A new manufacturing facility at Nakhon Nayok is due to be completed by the end of September, although the Bangkok Post notes that no products are likely to emerge before 2009.