Lok Sabha Question No. 2806 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-03-13
Subject: Price Rise of Medicines
Ministry: CHEMICALS AND FERTILIZERS
Asked by: ASHOK MAHADEORAO NETE

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CHEMICALS & FERTILIZERS DEPARTMENT OF PHARMACEUTICALS

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2806

TO BE ANSWERED ON 13 th  March, 2018

## Price Rise of Medicines

†2806. SHRI ASHOK MAHADEORAO NETE:

Will the Minister of CHEMICALS AND FERTILIZERS be pleased to state:

- (a) the percentage increase registered in the price of medicines during the last five years;
- (b) whether permission has been sought from the Government to increase the price of medicines;
- (c) if  so,  the details of permission granted for increase in the prices along with the names of such medicines; and
- (d) the  details  of  the  medicines  for  which  the  prices  have  reduced/have  been reduced during the said period?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF ROAD TRANSPORT AND HIGHWAYS; MINISTRY  OF  SHIPPING  AND  MINISTRY  OF  CHEMICALS  AND  FERTILIZERS (SHRI MANSUKH L. MANDAVIYA)

(a) to (c): As  per  provisions  of  the  Drugs  (Prices  Control)  Order,  2013  (DPCO, 2013), the Government shall revise the ceiling prices of scheduled formulations as per the  annual  wholesale  price  index  (WPI)  for  preceding  calendar  year  on  or  before  1st April  of  every  year  and  notify  the  same  on  the  1st  day  of  April  every  year.  The manufacturers may increase the maximum retail price (MRP) of scheduled formulations once in  a  year,  in  the  month  of  April,  on  the  basis  of  the  wholesale  price  index  with respect  to  previous  calendar  year  and  no  prior  approval  of  the  Government  in  this regard shall be required. The percentage increase in the maximum prices of Scheduled formulations    based  on  wholesale  prices  for  the  last  five  years  are    1.97186%  w.e.f 01/04/2017;    (-)  2.7105%  w.e.f  01/04/2016;  3.849%  w.e.f  01/04/2015;    6.32%  w.e.f 01/04/2014 and 7.54% w.e.f 01/06/2013.

Further  as  per  para  20  of  the  DPCO,  2013,  the  Government  shall  monitor  the maximum retail prices (MRP) of all the drugs, including the non-scheduled formulations and ensure that no manufacturer increases the maximum retail price of a drug more than ten percent of maximum retail price during preceding twelve months and where the increase is beyond ten percent of maximum retail price, it shall reduce the same to the level of ten percent of maximum retail price for next twelve months.

- (d): National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed the ceiling prices of 530 scheduled formulations under original schedule - I of the DPCO, 2013 from period 15.5.2013 to 26.2.2016 resulting in the reduction of the prices as follows:

| Statement showing reduction in ceiling prices of scheduled formulations with respect to maximum price under NELM 2011 as on 26.2.2016   | Statement showing reduction in ceiling prices of scheduled formulations with respect to maximum price under NELM 2011 as on 26.2.2016   |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| %reduction with respect to Maximum Price                                                                                                | No. of drugs                                                                                                                            |
| 0<= 5%                                                                                                                                  | 80                                                                                                                                      |
| 5<=10%                                                                                                                                  | 50                                                                                                                                      |
| 10<=15%                                                                                                                                 | 57                                                                                                                                      |
| 15<=20%                                                                                                                                 | 43                                                                                                                                      |
| 20<=25%                                                                                                                                 | 65                                                                                                                                      |
| 25<=30%                                                                                                                                 | 49                                                                                                                                      |
| 30<=35%                                                                                                                                 | 26                                                                                                                                      |
| 35<=40%                                                                                                                                 | 34                                                                                                                                      |
| Above 40%                                                                                                                               | 126                                                                                                                                     |
| TOTAL                                                                                                                                   | 530                                                                                                                                     |

NPPA  has  also  fixed/reduced  the  ceiling  prices  of  851  scheduled  formulations  w.e.f 29.3.2016 to 28.2.2018 resulting in the reduction in the prices as follows:

| Statement showing reduction in ceiling prices of scheduled formulations with respect to maximum price under NELM 2015 as on 28.2.2018   | Statement showing reduction in ceiling prices of scheduled formulations with respect to maximum price under NELM 2015 as on 28.2.2018   |
|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
| %reduction with respect to Maximum Price                                                                                                | No. of scheduled formulations                                                                                                           |
| 0<= 5%                                                                                                                                  | 234                                                                                                                                     |
| 5<=10%                                                                                                                                  | 134                                                                                                                                     |
| 10<=15%                                                                                                                                 | 98                                                                                                                                      |
| 15<=20%                                                                                                                                 | 98                                                                                                                                      |
| 20<=25%                                                                                                                                 | 93                                                                                                                                      |
| 25<=30%                                                                                                                                 | 65                                                                                                                                      |
| 30<=35%                                                                                                                                 | 46                                                                                                                                      |
| 35<=40%                                                                                                                                 | 24                                                                                                                                      |
| Above 40%                                                                                                                               | 59                                                                                                                                      |
| Total formulations                                                                                                                      | 851                                                                                                                                     |

The details of the price fixation are available at NPPA's website i.e. www.nppaindia.nic.in.

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