Pricing regulator sets mechanism to fix prices of off-patent drugs

Prices to be capped at 50% of innovator price; to be reviewed after one year

The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) has arrived at a formula to fix the prices of drugs that go off patent. The retail price of a drug that contains any molecule, component or ingredient that has been patented under the Patents Act (1970) shall be revised upon expiry of the patent to 50 per cent of the current ceiling price. After one year, the ceiling price will be revised again based on market data.

In a notification dated May 11, Awadhesh Kumar Choudhary, senior economic advisor, DoP laid out the mechanism to arrive at a ceiling price for drugs that are