At the heart of this debate is Section 3(d) of the Patents Act, a safeguard designed to prevent drugmakers from extending monopoly protection through trivial modifications to existing medicines.
Danish pharma major Novo Nordisk on Friday launched its blockbuster type 2 diabetes treatment injection Ozempic, globally popular for its weight-loss benefits.
While the introduction of branded generics is likely to accelerate volumes for GLP-1 agonists, value growth may moderate because of price erosion.
Abbott will exclusively distribute and market Extensior in the country, becoming the second company to secure sole distribution rights for Novo's semaglutide portfolio in India, after Emcure Pharma.
The fast-growing GLP-1 market, propelled by lower-cost generics following patent expiry, is widening availability beyond patients with obesity and diabetes -- but also driving unsupervised, appearance-led demand, according to doctors.
'Any promotional activity carried out under the pretext of disease awareness, influencer engagement, corporate campaigns, or similar activities that create brand recall/product visibility of the prescription shall also be treated as violations.'
Inspections conducted across 49 entities including pharmacies, wholesalers, and clinics to detect violations and misleading marketing practices.
The semaglutide patent expiry next year could unleash a wave of generic versions from Indian drugmakers, with prices expected to go lower -- at least 80 per cent.
'As more patients are prescribed these drugs, intolerance due to gastrointestinal and other side effects will become more visible, leading to higher discontinuation rates.'
Emcure Pharmaceuticals on Monday said it saw Poviztra, its newly launched semaglutide brand, as a "long-term" opportunity in India's fast-evolving obesity and cardiometabolic therapy market, even as price competition in the glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) segment intensified.
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