Earlier today, Justice M.S. Sanklecha of the Bombay High Court dismissed a challenge by Bayer AG to the IPAB’s decision to grant Natco a compulsory license to manufacture and distribute a generic version of Bayer’s patented kidney cancer drug, Nexavar.
As per the Mint report, Justice Sanklecha stated, “We don’t see a reason to interfere with the order passed by IPAB and, therefore, the case is dismissed.” In upholding the Nexavar compulsory license, generic versions of the drug can continue to be manufactured at Rs 8,800 per month, rather than the patented price of Rs. 2.8lakh per month. There still lies an appeal to the Supreme Court if Bayer wishes to take this up, which the Supreme Court will take up only if it believes a question of law is to be decided upon.
