New Delhi: Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers, Shri D.V. Sadananda Gowda, while giving a written reply to a question on controlling prices of life saving drugs, in Rajya Sabha today, stated that as an ongoing process, the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) fixes the ceiling prices of the formulations as and when formulations are included in the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM).
The Minister stated that NPPA has so far fixed the ceiling prices of the 857 formulations included in Revised Schedule-I of the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013 (DPCO) up to 31st May, 2019.
The details of reduction in prices of scheduled formulations effected under the DPCO, as compared to the highest price prevailing prior to the announcement of DPCO, 2013 for formulation of NLEM, 2015 (Revised Schedule), are as follows:
| % Reduction with respect to Maximum Price | No. of Scheduled Formulations |
| 0<= 5% | 234 |
| 5<=10% | 138 |
| 10<=15% | 98 |
| 15<=20% | 100 |
| 20<=25% | 93 |
| 25<=30% | 65 |
| 30<=35% | 46 |
| 35<=40% | 24 |
| Above 40% | 59 |
| Total | 857 |
Giving a written reply to a separate question on capping prices of cancer drugs, in Rajya Sabha today, Shri Gowda stated that NPPA has put a cap on Trade Margin of 42 select non-scheduled anti-cancer medicines under ‘Trade Margin Rationalisation’ Approach, w.e.f. 27th February, 2019. By this approach, the MRP of 526 brands of these medicines have been reduced by up to 90%. This move will result in an approximately annual savings of around Rs. 984 crore to the patients, the Minister added.
