(Taiwan) Patent law changes to open door to export of generic Tamiflu? :: BiotechEast - Taiwan and China biotechnology, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, ^¤å½s×, ^¤å×§ï ::

(David Silver)

31 August, 2006
News that Taiwan intends to amend local IP laws to allow for patented drugs manufactured locally to be exported to poorer countries appears to be aimed at building a revenue model into the manufacture in Taiwan of generic Tamiflu under so-called 'compulsory license.'

As recently reported in local media, the Intellectual Property Office of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Department of Health (DOH) and the Bureau of Foreign Trade together reached an agreement on the amendment to Article 76 of Taiwan's Patent Law, regarding so-called 'mandatory authorization.' The new provision will relax regulations on drug exportation, so that upon the request of poorer countries, local drug companies may manufacture and export drugs to those countries without the consent of the patent holders, usually Big Pharma. As such, these medicines would be available at a much cheaper price than their authorized versions.

This amendment seems custom-designed to allow companies which are making generic Tamiflu for Taiwan's DOH under compulsory license conditions to make extra money from their participation in the project. And it seems to contradict the DOH's earlier statement made when it enacting compulsory licensing conditions in November 2005, when it said that any Taiwan-made generic Tamiflu was strictly for local use only and would not be exported to any other country.

With this earlier position designed to allow for the slightest chance of restarted negotiations with Tamiflu patent-holder Roche, the realization that it probably will not now receive an authorized manufacturing sublicense has the Taiwan government and companies contracted to it now looking for as many ways to benefit from the project as possible.

Such benefits are not only financial but also diplomatic--an important consideration from diplomatically–isolated Taiwan. This is evidenced by the recognition Taiwan received in international media with its donation to Vietnam in September 2005 of 600,000 doses of genuine Tamiflu.

Print this Article