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Government plans crackdown on lookalike drug brands

In January, the Drugs Technical Advisory Board, India's top drug advisory body, discussed the problem of identical brand names for different product categories. It recommended prohibiting the manufacture and marketing of drugs with the same brand name to ensure patient safety.

• By Newsdesk
• New Delhi
• Jul 30, 2024

News

Drug manufacturers are set to face increased scrutiny over their branding practices as the government aims to eliminate lookalike and soundalike brand names that could cause confusion and jeopardize patient safety.

According to sources, the government plans to validate only the original brand names approved by the regulator, prohibiting other similar-sounding or identical-looking brands from being marketed. Manufacturers will soon be required to upload formulation details and brand names of their products on the government's portal.This issue was recently discussed within the health ministry. 

To address the issue, the government has proposed making the database of all product brand names on the Sugam portal publicly accessible.

Examples of problematic brand names include 'Olvance,' used for the antihypertensive drug olmesartan, and 'Oleanz,' an antipsychotic drug olanzapine. Another case is IMOX (amoxicillin tablets for humans) versus INIMOX (a veterinary injection combining amoxicillin and cloxacillin).

In January, the Drugs Technical Advisory Board, India's top drug advisory body, discussed the problem of identical brand names for different product categories. It recommended prohibiting the manufacture and marketing of drugs with the same brand name to ensure patient safety.

Following this, the Director General of Health Services (DGHS) wrote to the Controller General of Patents, Designs, and Trademarks, urging increased monitoring of pharmaceutical trademarks to identify and prevent instances of similarity or confusion.

"We have become aware that various drugs are being produced and distributed under identical or similar trademarks, creating confusion among healthcare professionals and patients, and increasing the risk of medication errors, adverse drug reactions, and other serious health issues," stated the DGHS letter.

Sent in May, the letter emphasized the need for stricter implementation of trademark regulations to protect public health. The DGHS requested that the trademarks office prioritize this issue and take immediate action to strengthen trademark regulations for medicines.

The drugs consultative committee is set to deliberate and provide recommendations on this matter later this month, according to sources.