Author: Lynne Taylor

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) will this month begin a public consultation on proposals to make certain new drugs available to patients before they are formally licensed, with a view to having such a scheme up and running later this year.

The US Senate is set to vote today on its $871 billion health reform bill, after a third and final procedural vote yesterday approved a full vote at 7am Washington time this morning.

R&D spending by India’s 25 leading drugmakers grew nearly 17% overall in 2008-9, with a number of firms increasing their investments by over 40%, according to a local survey.

The US Senate health reform bill has now cleared two of three procedural votes needed before it can go to a final vote on Thursday.

The European Commission has not taken full account of the impact its proposals to combat the counterfeit drugs trade will have on the prices and accessibility of medicines, say public health officials.