The 2005 Patents Act which introduced amendments to the 1970 Act came under severe criticism by the Supreme Court on Wednesday in the Novartis vs Indian Patent Office case. Meanwhile, Novartis filed a fresh affidavit, which claimed that they had distributed Glivec worth around Rs 7,500 crore between 2002 and 2011. It maintains that 85% of the patients in India were being provided the drug free of cost. Novartis was prompted to file this affidavit after the court had expressed its shock over the high price of the drug. Novartis also sought some more time to respond to the court’s suggestion that they should slash the price of Glivec instead of having an elaborate patient assistance programme.
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