-The Times of India MUMBAI: In a move that has surprised and shaken the industry, prices of widely-used expensive anti-diabetic and cardiac medicines will reduce by as much as 35% over the next few weeks, with the drug pricing regulator, National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA), deciding to bring them under price control. In a rare invocation of a lesser-used provision in the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO), NPPA has fixed the prices...
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Pills for polls-Kundan Pandey
-Down to Earth The free medicine scheme in Rajasthan may benefit Congress Of the many poll sops that Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot doled out in the past two years, the one scheme that seems to have struck the right chord with voters is the initiative to give free essential medicines at government healthcare facilities. The Mukhyamantri Nishulk Dava Yojna, launched in 2011, has offered some hope to the incumbent Congress government,...
More »Branded Medicines cost 15 times more than generic ones
-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Branded Medicines cost 2-15 times more than non-branded generic medicines sold at Jan Aushadhi stores. For example, a 10-tablet strip of Diclofenac SR (100mg), a popular pain killer, costs Rs 51.91 whereas the same generic medicine costs only Rs 3.35 at Jan Aushadhi stores. An 100 ml bottle of cough syrup manufactured and marketed by drug companies costs Rs 33 while those sold at Jan Aushadhi...
More »Kerala tackles prejudice and prices -C Maya
-The Hindu The State population stands at a little over three crore, but average consumption of drugs is three times the national average In Kerala, where people have a marked preference for branded drugs, where the most expensive brand is considered the best, and only those brands pushed by doctors sell, the new Drug (Prices Control) Order, which is expected to cut prices by 20-25 per cent, may not have much of...
More »The right medicine
-The Business Standard Govt should streamline its free medicines plan The Centre is reportedly going to shelve a plan to procure generic drugs for free supply to patients throughout the country. This is a serious error. Reportedly, states will instead be asked to do so; but, if a perceived inability to procure, stock and distribute these drugs is the reason for backtracking on the plan, how precisely will states be free of...
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