The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has decided to fix the prices of 50 anti-diabetic and cardiac medicines. While the move will help consumers, it will erode the margins of pharmaceutical companies. The reduction will range from 10-35 per cent.
In a notification dated July 10, the NPPA said it has “fixed the prices of anti-diabetic and cardiovascular drugs in respect of 108 non-scheduled formulation packs”.
The Government had revised the National Essential Medicines List last year, bringing 348 bulk drugs and 652 drug formulations under price control. This new notification, however, brings drugs outside the essential medicines list within the price control regime.
The provisions of the Drug Prices Control Order (DPCO), 2013, allow the NPPA to fix a price ceiling on any drug for a period “if it considers it necessary to do so in public interest”.
Sarabjit Kour Nangra, VP (Pharmaceutical), Angel Broking, termed this “a rare invocation” of the provision. She estimated that the pharmaceutical market would be impacted to the tune of ₹5,500 crore.
Following this notification, the prices of key medicines, including Gliclazide, Pioglitazone, Amlodipine, and Heparin, will be capped, as with medicines in the essential list. As such, if the price of a drug is 25 per cent higher than the average price of other drugs of the same formulation, then its price will be capped at the 25 per cent level for all the medicines in that group.
Nangra added that the biggest impact will be felt by Sanofi (₹139 crore lost sales), Zydus Cadila (₹40 crore), Ranbaxy (₹38 crore), Cipla (₹19 crore), Lupin (₹32 crore), DRL (₹14 crore) and Sun Pharma (₹25 crore).
Shailesh Ayyangar, President, Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India, said the move “will be detrimental to the investment climate for market expansion, brand building and employment generation”.