Business News

Mumbai: India's drug pricing regulator has increased the ceiling price of 11 scheduled formulations by 50%, in a bid to ensure their availability. Most of these drugs are used as first-line treatment for various conditions including asthma, glaucoma, thalassemia, tuberculosis and mental health disorders.The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) at a recent meeting increased the prices by invoking Paragraph 19 of the Drugs Prices Control Order, which gives it the power to fix or change drug prices under certain circumstances. It made the decision even as suppliers of some of these formulations had sought to discontinue supplies citing unviability.The ceiling prices have been revised for benzylpenicillin (1 million IU injection), atropine injection (0.6 mg/ml), streptomycin powder for injection (750 mg and 1000 mg), sabutamol tablet (2 mg and 4 mg and respirator solution 5 mg/ml), pilocarpine (2% drops), cefadroxil tablet (500 mg), desferrioxamine for injection (500 mg) and lithium tablets (300 mg)."The industry has been demanding a substantial increase in prices as it has been battling rising input costs. The mandate of the NPPA is to ensure availability of essential drugs at affordable prices while ensuring affordability. The essential drugs must remain available to address the public health needs of the country and their price regulation should not lead to a situation where these drugs become unavailable in the market," the minutes of the NPPA meeting said.The NPPA had previously used its extraordinary power under Paragraph 19 in 2019 and in 2021 when it raised the prices of 21 and nine formulations, respectively, by 50%."Access cannot be jeopardised. For benzylpenicillin, there is only one manufacturer left who wants to pull out. The decision has been taken in larger public interest," a senior government official said. "The essential drugs must remain available to address the public health needs of the country and their price regulation should not lead to a situation where these drugs become unavailable in the market." The NPPA has been receiving applications from manufacturers seeking higher ceiling prices, citing increased cost of ingredients, increase in the cost of production, change in exchange rate, etc. Companies had also applied for discontinuation of some of the formulations, the official said.