 "Pharma industry concerned on Centre's drug price control")
The move to reduce the prices of these drugs would impact industry revenues worth Rs 600 crore, said SV Veerramani, president of Indian Drug Manufacturers Association (IDMA).
However, the IDMA has sought the government to hold the move till the industry takes up a detailed study on the full impact.
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Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of inauguration of Pharmac South 2014, a trade exhibition of South Indian Pharmaceutical Industry, he said, “The anti-diabetic and cardiovascular drugs market is around Rs 6,000 crore and the reduction in prices would impact around Rs 600 crore revenues to the industry.”
He added that more than the loss and the business impact, industry is worried if this would be a common trend.
The DPCO Act, 2013, empowers the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) to fix a ceiling on retail price of a drug “in extraordinary circumstances” for the public interest.
“It came as a shock to us. We are afraid this would set a precedence and the government may bring in control on more drugs using the clause in future, which would leave us in a situation where we don't have a breathing space,” said Veerramani.
He said the association has made a representation to the department of Pharmaceuticals and had approached the NPPA asking them to hold the decision till the association would look into it.
The association would also meet the Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilisers Ananth Kumar with the request, he added.
“We are trying our best to convince the government the move would affect the industry badly. Otherwise, we might have to look at various options including the legal,” he added. The prices for these medicines has seen an average reduction of 10-12 per cent, he added.
The DPCO 2013, which came into effect in the second half of last year, has impacted industry revenues worth Rs 1,000 crore and the industry was slowly recovering from its impact, when the new price control decision hit it again, he said. The industry growth has come down from 12-15 per cent to six per cent last year owing to the drug price control across 348 formulations under the DPCO.
The NPPA has fixed the price of 108 non-scheduled formulation packs, 50 drugs in anti-diabetic and cardiovascular segment as per the empowering Act.
Speaking about the industry, he said that the IDMA has also suggested that the patented drugs which are essential for the patients in the country could be brought under the price control. He welcomed the government’s move to support bulk drug manufacturing in the country, which makes the country self sufficient in drug manufacturing.