Government will not take any decision on drug price control without holding discussions with the pharmaceutical industry and other stakeholders, Minister of State for Chemicals and Fertilisers Hansraj Gangaram Ahir said on Thursday.
“We take every step very carefully when it comes to the issue of drug price control as we do not want to take even a single step without holding discussions with the industry,” Ahir said at an Assocham conference here.
He said the Government wants the prices of medicines to be affordable for general public but at the same it wants the industry to flourish. “We need to promote the industry for sure, this is certain,” said the minister. In order to bring down drug prices, a high-level panel has recommended capping the trade margins at 35 per cent on all the drugs with MRP of above Rs 50.
For drugs priced Rs 20-50, the panel has proposal to cap the margin at 40 per cent. It also recommended capping the margin at 50 per cent for the drugs priced from Rs 2-20.
However, the panel proposed no capping of trading margin on the medicine priced up to Rs 2. Trading margin is the margin which wholesalers and retailers earn by selling the medicines. Besides, the committee has also recommended capping margins on all drugs including stents and orthopaedic implants.