The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority will monitor how companies are increasing prices of non-scheduled drugs.
Recalling or relabelling medicines already in the supply chain before September 22 will not be mandatory, the finance ministry said on Tuesday, issuing a fresh set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) to address industry concerns following the announcement of goods and services tax (GST) revisions.
Refusing to divulge identity of the companies, sources indicated that three of them are based in Delhi and the remaining are in Maharashtra.
Move is the first in a series of steps to help pharma industry.
The department of pharmaceuticals turned down a review petition by drugmaker Cipla against a price fixation order by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority, slashing the price of Dytor Plus, a medicine for kidney and heart ailments.
In a decision that would impact the entire pharmaceutical industry, the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed the prices of 130 common drugs and antibiotics.
NPPA seeks data from firms to revalidate existing prices.
The move is in line with the NPPA's recent policy of putting a cap on prices.
The drug regulator recently asked some domestic companies to cut prices of insulin while MNCs, which are major players, are allowed to set their own price for the drug.
Pharmaceutical companies which increase prices of their medicines beyond 10 per cent in a year will face regulatory action.
Now, the companies need to get National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority's nod for changing medicine composition. If they flout norms, government will take penal action.
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has revised prices of 440 medicines. Around 300 medicines have seen price cuts, while the others have seen a hike, sources said. The extent of the revisions is not known as yet.
The USTR report, released just ahead of the US' April 2 deadline for implementing reciprocal tariffs, has also cited high tariffs and price caps, which have not increased in line with inflation, as key obstacles for US businesses.
NPPA denies price hike on Sanofi, Novartis, and Allergan products.
The move brings an additional 15 per cent of the retail medicine market worth over Rs 4,000 crore (Rs 40 billion) under direct price control. All domestic companies, including drug majors like Ranbaxy, Cipla, Lupin and Dr Reddy's, have syrups and tonics in their product portfolio.
Novartis India is up in arms against a two-month old decision of the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority to reduce the price of its flagship brand Voveran on public interest grounds. The annual sales of Voveran, the brand name for pain reliever medicine diclofenac, exceed Rs 100 crore and account for one-fourth of the company's total sales turnover. The company has filed a review petition with the chemicals and fertilisers ministry against the authority's decision.
The government has been stringent with pricing changes. Prices of 651 essential medicines came down from April 1, 2023 by 6.73 per cent with the government capping ceiling prices of these drugs.
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has decided to have one price for basic utility condoms and the other for pleasure condoms.
Another cap for imported insulin; domestic manufacturers cry foul.
Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour in the Lok Sabha, minister of state for chemicals and fertilisers Srikant Jena said the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has been asked to look into demands for bringing 23 anti-cancer drugs within the ambit of price control.
In a move likely to influence future drug price regulation in the country, the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has started a process to understand how other countries carry out this function.The authority has already studied the relevant regulatory systems in at least eight major countries. It has also finalised a round-table meeting on April 11 in New Delhi to sensitise stakeholders on the need to have an international outlook.
NPPA will begin analysing pricing trends of 74 bulk drugs that come under the government-notified price-controlled list every quarter.
The price regulatory pharma body has set limits to the extent pharma companies can increase the price of medicines in a year.
National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has for the first time fixed the prices of 27 formulation packs including 'Livadex' injection and 'Lederplex T liquid'.
The Union ministry of chemicals and fertilisers has initiated a move to bring all essential medicines sold in the country under a price cap.
The new drugs to come under price control include commonly-used antibiotics and painkillers
The first-ever study conducted by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) on cancer medicines has found huge price variations among different brands of same medicines sold in the country.
Govt has given the medicine price regulating body a freedom to control prices of medicines.
For the consumer, there would be practically no impact on prices of essential medicines this year.
The government is actively considering bringing 355 life saving drugs under price control and take a few additional measures to help the poor and below poverty line (BPL) families, once the Union Cabinet approves National Pharmaceutical Policy.
Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd said it has not received any notice from National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority to deposit Rs 15 million as penalty for pricing flaws.
Leading pharmaceutical firms such as Cipla and Ranbaxy are among the firms pulled up by the drug price regulator National Pharmaceuticals Pricing Authority (NPPA) for overcharging.
India has capped the prices of 36 drugs, including those used to treat infections and diabetes, in its latest move to make essential medicines more affordable, a senior official of the country's drug pricing authority told Reuters on Friday.
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