Medicine Price Control

Medicine Price Control

Part of: GS Prelims and GS – II – Health 

In news

• National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority  (NPPA) has fixed the price of 81 medicines, including off-patent anti-diabetic drugs, helping to pass on the benefits to patients.

Key takeaways 

• The decision was taken because the five-year price exemption given to these medicines on account of indigenous R&D got over recently.
• Revision in existing ceiling prices of scheduled formulations based on the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) was also approved by the Authority.
• The revised prices will be effective from April 2021.
• It also decided to retain the revised ceiling price of Heparin injection up to September 2021. 

Important value additions 

• The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is a government regulatory agency that controls the prices of pharmaceutical drugs in India.
• It was constituted in 1997 as an attached office of the Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP), 
• Ministry: Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers.