India will cap margins on 137 cancer drugs at 30% of maximum retail prices from Nov. 9, a measure the government says could cut prices by up to 70% and save patients ₹2,500 crore annually.
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) set the limit for non-scheduled medicines. The Department of Pharmaceuticals said the reduction in maximum retail prices (MRPs) will vary by medicine, and estimated that the measure could save patients ₹2,500 crore a year.
The covered list includes immunotherapies used across more than 20 cancer types, as well as pembrolizumab, durvalumab and osimertinib, the department said. The policy builds on an NPPA pilot from 2019 that capped margins on 42 selected non-scheduled cancer medicines. The department said MRPs fell for 526 brands after that step, with reductions of as much as 90%.
The Supreme Court is also examining the pricing of cancer medicines. The Guardian reported that justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta described the pricing situation as “carnage” and “extortion.” The Guardian also reported that, at a Sept. 29 hearing, the justices pointed to a drug’s markup. The Department of Pharmaceuticals, citing NPPA analysis, said markups averaged 170% on some cancer medicines and topped 700% in some cases.
The Guardian reported that Sarojam Radhakrishnan, a retired bank employee in Kerala, filed a petition in 2022 after her breast cancer medicines cost more than 63,000 rupees per month. She died in September 2022 while the case was pending, the newspaper said.
The court has asked the government why similar controls should not apply to other non-patented medicines, The Guardian reported. The government’s response is due Oct. 27.
