New Delhi: The prices of essential medicines, including painkillers, antibiotics and anti-infectives will witness a miniscule increase from April 1 as the Department of Pharmaceuticals on Sunday issued its annual list of revised ceiling prices for 923 scheduled drug formulations and revised retail prices of 65 formulations.
In a notification, the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) announced an annual change of 0.0055 percent increase in prices of drugs under the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM), in line with the annual change in the wholesale price index.
The NPPA said that based on the WPI data provided by the office of the Economic Advisor, Department of Industry and Internal trade Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the annual change in WPI works out as (+) 0.00551 percent during the calendar year 2023 over the corresponding period in 2022. With the changes, manufacturers may now increase the maximum retail price (MRP) of scheduled formulations on the basis of WPI, without needing any prior approval from the government in this regard, the notification stated.
The formulations in the new revised rate list include essential drugs such as painkillers, antivirals, antibiotics, antimalarials, and drugs for type 2 diabetes. Painkiller drug Diclofenac will now have a ceiling price of Rs 2.05 per tablet, whereas Ibuprofen tablets will be priced at Rs 0.71 and Rs 1.20 per tablet for its 200 mg and 400 mg dosage versions respectively.
The revision of ceiling prices is a routine exercise undertaken by the NPPA.
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