The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) under the Department of Pharmaceuticals, as an on-going process, with the help of Price Monitoring & Resource Units (PMRUs) and State Drug Controllers (SDCs) undertake activities related to market-based data collection, monitoring of the notified prices of medicines and detection of violation of the provisions of Drug (Price Control) Order, 2013 (DPCO, 2013).

NPPA fixes the ceiling prices of scheduled formulations as per provisions of DPCO, 2013 and monitors the prices of non-scheduled drugs so as to ensure that their prices do not increase beyond 10 percent in a year. NPPA has fixed ceiling prices of 355 medicines and 882 formulations for medicines under National List of Essential Medicines, 2015 (Schedule-I of DPCO, 2013). Most of the drugs that are part of COVID management protocol have ceiling prices, viz., Paracetamol, Dexamethasone, Methyl Prednisolone, IVIGs, Enoxaparin, Budesonide, Heparin and Amphotericin etc. In the case of few non-scheduled medicines like Remdesivir, which are part of COVID protocol and are non-scheduled, on Government intervention, MRPs of various brands of Remdesivir have been reduced voluntarily by the major manufacturers/marketers of the Remdesivir Injection (lyophilized). Inter-brand MRPs that varied up to Rs 5400/ per vial were brought down to less than Rs 3500/-.

Furthermore, to facilitate availability and ensure affordability, NPPA has capped the trade margin for Oxygen Concentrators at 70% on Price to Distributor (PTD) level vide notification dated 3rd June, 2021 and on Pulse Oximeter, Glucometer, BP Monitor, Nebulizer and Digital Thermometer vide notification dated 13th July, 2021.

In addition, Retail prices for 1,640 formulations have been fixed under DPCO, 2013 till date and in recent years exercising extraordinary powers under DPCO, 2013 in public interest, NPPA has fixed the prices of following drugs and medical devices:

(i) Ceiling price of Stents in February, 2017

(ii) Ceiling price of Knee Implants in August, 2017

(iii) Capped trade margin on selected 42 anti-cancer drugs in February, 2019.

The information was given by the Union Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Shri Mansukh Mandaviya in a written reply in the LokSabha today.