SC Questions Center on Implementation of UCPMP in Pharma Sector

The Apex Court directed the government to submit its report and a high-powered committee was formed by the government under the chairmanship of Dr Vinod K Paul, member of NITI Aayog.

The Supreme Court has asked the Central government whether the Uniform Code for Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices (UCPMP), 2024 is being implemented with force or not, according to an agency report.

The division bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was hearing a petition filed by the Federation of Medical and Sales Representatives Association of India earlier, seeking orders to the Centre to make the Uniform Code legally binding to the pharma industry.

According to a PTI report, the matter was recently heard by the bench, where Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the Court that the Federation’s petition had become infructuous as a statutory regime is now in place.

The bench then observed that while the regime is in place, the question is whether it is actually implemented or not. The report quoted the bench stating that the concern is whether the regime in place is a toothless tiger.

The Solicitor General said that the regime is in force and it would need some time to show it.

The Federation had lodged a case in 2021 in the Supreme Court after repeated demands and persuasion at all levels failed to make the code statutory.

The Apex Court directed the government to submit its report and a high-powered committee was formed by the government under the chairmanship of Dr Vinod K Paul, member of NITI Aayog. While there is no clue on what the committee has done, the Federation alleges, the freebies offered by the companies continue to flow freely in the market.

The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) came out with a new UCPMP in 2024, but the Federation alleged that it remains toothless and statutorily unbinding.

The Apex Committee for Pharma Marketing Practices under the DoP reprimanded AbbVie Healthcare India, the Indian arm of global biopharma major AbbVie Inc, for alleged unethical marketing practices, sponsoring foreign vacations to Monaco and Paris for 30 healthcare professionals (HCPs) in violation of the Uniform Code for Pharmaceutical Marketing Practices (UCPMP), 2024.

Pointing at the order, the Federation alleged, "They can identify, investigate and establish that wrongdoings exist. But they can only 'reprimand' and do nothing else. In this case the DoP has urged the CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) to file a tax evasion case against the company in question. The real issue of bribery remains unpunished."

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