‘Industry needs more a predictable IP environment’

It is after a long hiatus that India has got a government at the centre with a clear majority. This is an opportunity that Prime Minister Modi must leverage to the maximum. We, as an industry, are hopeful that healthcare, which hasn’t received the kind of attention it should, will now be accorded infrastructure status. This will not only bring increased investments to the sector but also contribute in a significant way to improving access to quality healthcare. India spends hardly 1.2 per cent of its GDP on healthcare which is lower than what countries that are far smaller in terms of economy size do. Our healthcare spend must be increased to at least three per cent of the GDP to ensure universal health coverage.

India has a rich pool of highly qualified scientists and we believe that an environment that fosters innovation will result in India being respected as a country that can deliver products innovated here. The right environment will serve to encourage more collaboration between global and local companies. Further, industry needs a more predictable IP environment; one that respects and encourages innovation. The setting up of fast track courts to decide IP cases is the need of the hour.

Clinical trials in India have all but come to a standstill. Industry is very much in favour of a robust and a transparent process and believes that India’s regulatory framework must be in line with global best practices. It is in the Indian patient’s interest to ensure that clinical trials are encouraged with adequate safeguards built into the process at every stage.

With the budget round the corner, we hope that this government will present a budget that is truly visionary. It will do well to introduce research tax credits which can be used to offset future tax liability similar to what exists in developed economies. This will provide the much required impetus to local companies in their research endeavours. Similarly, benefits should be accorded to companies engaged in R&D and income generated from utilisation of IP rights should be tax exempt.

All life-saving drugs should be free of import and other duties. This will serve to broaden access to the latest in healthcare. Access and affordability are two sides of the same coin. All stakeholders must come together to work towards delivering quality healthcare. Government and industry must collaborate to make medicines available to those who are economically weak while allowing market forces to decide prices for the balance.

There is much that can and must be done.

And if it happens, the healthcare landscape in India will forever change for the better.

– Ranjit Shahani, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Novartis India