Research and Markets: 2013 Healthcare, Regulatory and Reimbursement Landscape - Thailand

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/zl8tnn/healthcare) has announced the addition of GlobalData's new report "Healthcare, Regulatory and Reimbursement Landscape - Thailand" to their offering.

“Healthcare, Regulatory and Reimbursement Landscape - Thailand”

This report provides information on the healthcare, regulatory, and reimbursement landscape of Thailand, and gives an overview of the pharmaceutical and medical device markets, including size, segmentation, and key drivers and barriers.

This report was built using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research, and in-house analysis conducted by The authors's team of industry experts.

Thailand Flaunts Pharmaceutical Patent Protection

Lax enforcement of patent regulations in Thailand is alienating American intellectual property laws, as the Thai government focuses on using generic pharmaceuticals to maintain low healthcare costs, states a new report by research and consulting firm The authors.

The FDA seems unable to stop generic versions of patented pharmaceutical products being launched, and the Thai Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has previously granted compulsory licenses for Sustiva (efavirenz) and Kaletra (lopinavir), without any prior discussions with the patent holders. Policy changes were only made regarding the granting of compulsory licenses in November 2012.

Privileges for the Government Pharmaceutical Organization (GPO) may work as a barrier to industry growth, but will help the government control healthcare costs by promoting generic drug use. GPO is a state enterprise under the MoPH, and holds exclusive rights to supply government hospitals with products on the National List of Essential Drugs (NLED). GPO generic product registration is very fast and requires minimal documentation in comparison to standard regulatory procedures. Public hospitals are legally obliged to use 60% of their budget to purchase NLED-listed and GPO-produced medicines, while hospitals attached to the MoPH must use 80% of their budget to purchase drugs from GPO, even if they are priced slightly higher than the same medicines manufactured by other pharmaceutical companies. Institutes are however allowed to buy drugs from other manufacturers if GPO is unable to fulfill the order, and GPO itself allows subcontracting to small companies if it is unable to fulfill the order.

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Source: GlobalData