 "News digest")
DPCO amendment may benefit MNC device makers by allowing price control
Recent amendments to the Drug Prices Control Order (DPCO), 2013, have fuelled concerns that the authorities might find it difficult to keep the prices of essential medical devices in check as multinational firms would now be able to use patent protection to exempt such equipment from price control for five years.
According to a government notification, new drugs patented under the Indian Patent Act will be exempted from price control for five years from the date of the commencement of their commercial marketing by the manufacturer in the country.
