Source: The Sangai Express / PTI
New Delhi, October 02:
As Government and industry move toward keeping drug prices under check, cost of over 1,000 brands of commonly used medicines will come down with the rule of capping trade margins coming into force from today.
Pharmaceutical industry bodies have already submitted a list of over 1,000 brands of 'generic-generic' and 'branded generic' drugs, whose retail margins would be fixed at 35 per cent while that of wholesale are to be capped at 15 per cent.
The drugs, whose prices will come down include Omeprazole, an ulcer drug, which could see a reduction of 8.8 per cent, while that of Ciprofloxacin, a broad spectrum antibiotic manufactured by companies like Dupen Laboratories, could see a crash 92 per cent just Rs 6.90 from Rs 84.Official sources said many of the manufacturers barring a few have already submitted a list of their products on which the trade margins would be capped.
Companies have been given a month's transition time to comply with the new margin norms.
Moreover, from today the system of labelling 'Maximum price inclusive of all taxes' also kicks in thereby mandating drug manufacturers not to charge extra levies over MRP.
This rule has, however, been relaxed for imported drugs, for a period of six months.
These drugs will have to comply with the new MRP rule by March next year.
Also from today, bilingual system of labelling comes into force thererby requiring drug manufactures to print labels in English and Hindi on the pack.
Simultaneously, the joint committee headed by Secretary Chemicals and Petrochemicals Satwant Reddy Committee is working toward submitting its report to finalise the draft Pharma Policy later this month.