NPPA Revises Ceiling Price of 54 Drug Formulations

National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed the ceiling price of 54 drug formulations of Schedule-I under Drugs (Price Control) Amendment Order, 2016.

The price ceiling has been revised as per National List of Essential Medicines 2015 (NLEM). The new revision list notified by NPPA came into immediate effect.

‘The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is targeting to fix price for nearly 800 formulations based on National List for Essential Medicines 2015 by May 2016.’

The drug formulation packs include those that are used to treat bacterial infections, cancer, arthritis, and asthma.

"National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed/revised ceiling prices of 54 scheduled formulations of Schedule-I under Drugs (Price Control) Amendment Order, 2016 and retail price of two formulations under DPCO, 2013," the regulator said in a statement.

In the month of April, NPPA had fixed prices of 70 drug formulation packs, including those used for the treatment of bacterial infections, tuberculosis and cancer.

On March 29, the drug price regulator had fixed the ceiling price of as many as 103 drug formulation packs including those used for treating HIV/AIDS, bacterial infections, tuberculosis, high blood pressure, epilepsy, Hepatitis C and diabetes.

The prices of essential drugs are fixed by the government based on the simple average of all medicines in a particular therapeutic segment with sales more than one percent.

The prices of all other medicines are regulated by the government. Pharma companies are allowed to increase the prices of such drugs by up to 10% in a year.

The government had notified DPCO, 2013, which covers 680 formulations, with effect from May 15, 2014, replacing the 1995 order that regulated prices of only 74 bulk drugs.

Source: Medindia