If patents get pricey, Kerala HC says govt can act

Nifty22, 780.25-360.25. Motilal Oswal Midcap Fund Direct-Growth.

Key points

• The Kerala High Court ruled that administration intervention is permissible for prohibitively priced patented medicines.
• The observations came in a case concerning the affordability of abemaciclib and ribociclib, two patented medicines applied in the treatment of HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer.
• The Economic Times daily newspaper is available online now.
• Kerala HC notes exorbitant drug costs can trigger administration intervention in patented medicines.

Nifty22, 780.25-360.25. Motilal Oswal Midcap Fund Direct-Growth. The Economic Times daily newspaper is available online now.

Kerala HC notes exorbitant drug costs can trigger administration intervention in patented medicines. ET BureauLast Updated: Sep 29, 2026, 12: 48: 00 AM IST.

Notably, the Kerala High Court ruled that administration intervention is permissible for prohibitively priced patented medicines. The court directed the Centre to gather data on the affordability of specific life-saving drugs. This ruling addresses access problems for two breast cancer medications, abemaciclib and ribociclib. The decision empowers the administration to consider invoking Section 100 of the Patents Act for affordable access.

New Delhi: The Kerala High Court on Monday held that the administration could intervene when patented drugs were prohibitively priced, and directed the Centre to collect nationwide data on the affordability of patented life-saving medicines and assess whether existing rate controls and subsidy measures were ensuring patient access. The observations came in a case concerning the affordability of abemaciclib and ribociclib, two patented medicines applied in the treatment of HR-positive, HER2-negative breast cancer. It accounts for around 55-60% of breast cancer cases in India. While Swiss firm Novartis supplies ribociclib, US drug maker Eli Lilly holds the parent for abemaciclib.

In short, if patents get pricey, Kerala HC says govt can act is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.