CHINA LEX PHARMA LAW NEWSLETTER
Vol. 1, No. 30 - December 27, 2000
TOPICS THIS ISSUE:
- NPC to Tighten Regulation of Medicine
- Unauthorized Online Drugstores to Be Closed
- Medicine Price Hike to be Controlled
- Beijing Court Throws out Pfizer Domain Name Case
- Drug Research Institutions Required to Register
NPC to Tighten Regulation of Medicine
Chinese lawmakers on Tuesday called for changes to the way medicines are approved for sale in order to cut out corruption, reduce prices and control false advertising.
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) held a panel debate on the draft amendments to the Law on the Administration of Medicines, during which participants proposed streamlining the procedures for the approval and distribution of medicines through the creation of a single regulator.
Wang Mingshi said that because too many departments administer the making and selling of medicine, these often fail to cooperate, opening the way for problems.
Jiang Zhenghua and Zhou Guangzhao, who are both vice chairmen of the NPC Standing Committee, suggested the formation of a single regulator, though other lawmakers said such a move might lead to the abuse of power.
Compared with previous draft amendments, the current draft has increased restrictions and punishment for exorbitant pricing of medicines and kickbacks in the course of distribution.
(Source: Xinhua News Agency, AFX - Asia)
Unauthorized Online Drugstores to Be Closed
China's State Drug Administration (SDA) has issued a warning of an illegal "online pharma fair" and announced that web sites engaging in illegal pharmaceutical business will be punished.
China has 200 web sites providing pharmaceutical and health care information, including 40 unauthorized online drugstores.
With the recent emergence of many drug web sites, SDA's goal is to gradually regulate online pharmaceutical information and sales.
(Source: ChinaOnline)
Medicine Price Hike to be Controlled
To combat insider-trading and kickbacks in medicine sales, China's top legislature has decided to take action to seal the loopholes in this regard.
Draft amendments to the Law on the Administration of Medicines submitted to the National People's Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for deliberation on December 22 provide restrictions and punishments for exorbitant pricing of medicines and kickbacks in the course of circulation.
The amendments also ban the advertisement of prescribed medicine to control the excessive and false advertising that misleads customers.
Vice-chairman Li Boyong of the NPC Law Committee explained the latest changes to the amendments based on opinions and suggestions of legislators put forward in the previous meeting.
Medicines that are priced in line with market demand shall not infringe upon the interests of patients.
The amendments state that medical institutes should provide price listings for patients at their request. No enterprises, institutions or individuals will be allowed to offer or receive kickbacks.
The law also stipulates that those who break the rule or harm the interests of medicine users will pay penalties including compensation, administrative sanctions and criminal punishment.
(Source: Xinhua News Agency)
Beijing Court Throws out Pfizer Domain Name Case
The No. 2 Beijing Intermediate People's Court made a judgment Wednesday, December 13, throwing out a case brought by Pfizer, the producer of "Viagra", based in the United States, against a Chinese company.
According to the court, "Viagra" is not a famous trademark. The use of the name is not illegal or creates unfair competition according to the facts of the case.
Early this month, the US company sued Shenzhen Wanyong Information Network Company for illegally using the drug name as part of a website address. Pfizer said "Viagra" was an English word created by the company for its product. It has registered the trademark in more than 100 countries since 1995, becoming a well-known medicine worldwide. The English mark was registered in China in November 1997. However, Pfizer discovered that the Chinese company used "Viagra" in the domain name "viagra.com.cn" in July 1998.
The court agreed with the defense that "Viagra" had not yet been permitted into the Chinese market when the local company registered the domain name. Additionally, the website had not been put into public use for various reasons. Moreover, the domain name had been cancelled. According to the basic facts that have been released, it seems that Pfizer would have had a difficult time asserting that the domain name had been registered in bad faith. With regard to remedies, since the domain name had been cancelled before being used, there does not seem to be a strong argument for substantial damages.
In addition, most Chinese know the medicine as "Weige", the Chinese version of the medicine, and so "Viagra" was not a well-known trademark within the country and eligible for heightened protection.
(Source: Xinhua News Agency)
Drug Research Institutions Required to Register
All drug research institutions in China are required by the State Drug Administration to register with provincial drug administrations by the end of March 2001.
After the registration is passed, research institutions' applications for permission to produce medicine to be used in clinical tests will be accepted for consideration. However, official registration will be denied if the institutions are certified as unqualified, if the reports submitted fail to meet official requirements, or if their reports are regarded as unauthentic.
(Source: ChinaOnline)
Lehman Lee & Xu
China Lawyers, Notaries, Patent, Copyright and Trademark Agents
(formerly known as the L&A Law Firm)
Suite 188, Beijing International Club
21 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Beijing 100020 China
Tel.: (86)(10) 6532-3861
Fax: (86)(10) 6532-3877
mail@chinalaw.cc
http://www.chinalaw.cc/
To unsubscribe from this newsletter click here or send an email to chinalaw@chinalaw.cc with UNSUBSCRIBE_PHARMA in the subject line.
The China Lex Pharma Law Newsletter is intended to be used for news purposes only. It should not be taken as comprehensive legal advice, and Lehman, Lee & Xu will not be held responsible for any such reliance on its contents.
