Nexus between doctors and pharma companies is not encouraging use of generic drugs in Kashmir, Doctors Association of Kashmir said on Wednesday.

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President Doctors Association of Kashmir and influenza expert Dr Nissar ul Hasan told news agency—Kashmir News Observer (KNO) that doctors and drug mafia nexus are sabotaging the generic drug use in J&K and keeping it away from poor people who can’t afford to buy branded medicine.

Ranging from cars to family trips to household items, pharma companies provide doctors with freebies to prescribe their branded drugs, he added. “Even the chemists get huge margins for selling branded drugs,” Dr Nisar said.

He explained that a generic drug is a medication created to be the same as an already marketed brand-name drug in dosage form, safety, strength, route of administration, quality, performance characteristics and intended use.

“Generic drugs are copycat versions of branded drugs and cost 80 to 90% less than branded medicines as manufacturers do not have to spend on development and promotion of the drug,” he said.

For instance, Lyrica, the drug used for nerve problems, costs Rs 842 for a strip of 14 tablets whereas its generic version costs a meager Rs 70. Similarly Glivec, the branded drug, used for treating blood cancer is sold at a monthly cost of Rs 1.2 lakh while its generic version is sold at Rs 8000 only, he said.

According to Medical Council of India (MCI), the statutory body that registers doctors to ensure proper standards of medical practice on September 2016 amended Clause 1.5 of the Indian Medical Council (Professional conduct, etiquette and ethics), Regulations 2002 mandating doctors to prescribe generic medicines, the DAK president said.

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He said that MCI has repeatedly reiterated its directive asking doctors to prescribe generic drugs failing which strict disciplinary action must be taken against those violating the code.

Dr Nisar said that there is a need for a law to make generic drug prescribing mandatory and to ensure doctors prescribe cheaper generic drugs instead of costly branded medicines.

The DAK President said the law would make drugs affordable and accessible to poor patients who are not able to buy expensive brand-name drugs.

He said that around 25 per cent population in jammu and kashmir do not have access to medicines due to lack of purchasing power but making generic drug prescription mandatory will help poor patients to purchase drugs and save thousands of lives

Generic drugs, he said, have the efficacy as branded drugs, however, the “nexus” is misleading people about generic drugs that is preventing these drugs from getting popular.

“Unless a mass awareness about generic drugs along legal framework won’t take place, the push for generic medicines will remain an idea without implementation,” Dr Nisar said.

“While generic drugs account for 88% of prescriptions in the United States, in JK, unnecessary expensive therapies are used when less costly, equally effective options are available,” he added.

More education for both doctors and patients would increase the prescriptions and use of generic medications, he added.

Generic drugs are equal to a brand-name drug in strength, quality and efficacy and costs 80 to 90% less than a branded drug, he said.

A pharma company that develops a branded drug gets patent protection that prohibits other manufacturers from producing the drug for a period of 20 years.

Considering the importance of generic drugs, World Trade Organization (WTO) members during the 2001 Doha Declaration on TRIPS (Trade-related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) allowed governments to issue compulsory licenses that would allow companies to manufacture generic versions of patented products, he added.

Under the Indian Patent Act, 1970 a compulsory license to manufacture a drug can be issued after 3 years of grant of a patent on the product, if the product is still not available at affordable prices, Dr Nisar added.