BioCentury
ARTICLE | Politics & Policy

USTR launches review of IPR in India

October 14, 2014 2:08 AM UTC

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced its planned review of intellectual property rights (IPR) in India. The review, promised in April when USTR published its "2014 Special 301 Report," noted India remains on the U.S. government's "priority watch" list for IPR. The review also noted bilateral engagement to improve IP protection and enforcement in India would support that nation's efforts to achieve a "decade of innovation."

In its April report, USTR cited a variety of concerns related to the effects of India's IPR policies on pharmaceutical and medical device innovators, including higher bars to obtain patents on inventions; the ongoing prospect of compulsory licenses to innovator IP; disparities between domestic and foreign requirements on local manufacturing of pharmaceutical goods; and lack of guaranteed data protections. ...