Japanese ministry lays out plans to reform pharma industry

The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare (MHLW) has presented a draft strategy designed to make the pharma industry more competitive and give additional support for drug development in Japan.

It encourages Japanese drugmakers to expand their businesses through mergers and acquisitions, and companies struggling to develop new products will be urged to move towards the development of other kinds of medicines such as generic drugs. The MHLW also proposed the consolidation of generic drug manufacturers. The Ministry also said it would consider raising the drug prices set by the government in order to facilitate the development of innovative therapies.

Rather than depending heavily on off-patent drugs, Japanese drugmakers are being urged to promote the spread of low-cost generics. The government is aiming to increase the share of generics among all drugs used in the country to 80% or more by the fiscal year 2020, against 46.9% for 2013. Generic drugs are priced at 60%, and 50% in some cases, of their branded counterparts at the point at which they first become eligible for health insurance coverage.