Anti-infectives like Ivermectin, Mupirocin and Meropenem have also been added to the list, taking the total drugs under it to 384.
As many as 34 new drugs were added to and 26 dropped from an updated list of essential medicines on Tuesday, with the government saying this will reduce "patients' out-of-pocket expenditure". The National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM 2022) has 384 drugs, up from 376 in 2015. "Drafting this list is a lengthy process, and around 350 experts from across India have held over 140 consultation meetings to draft the NLEM 2022," Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said.
Lupin Ltd received US Food & Drug Administration's approval for its abbreviated new drug application for Cefuroxime Axetil tablets.
Pharma major Ranbaxy Laboratories on Thursday said it has scored a legal victory with a United States court ruling that its Cefuroxime Exetil product does not infringe upon the patent rights of GlaxoSmithKline.
The European Medicines Agency's review is the second setback to Alkem Laboratories