Pharma News
MNCs move SC over drug price control
Till now, pharma companies, opposing price control, have been trying to make their voices heard in the corridors of power. With the courts recently stepping in to bring essential medicines under a price control regime, multinational-led industry body OPPI (Organization of Pharmaceutical Producers of India) has moved the Supreme Court seeking to be heard on the drug pricing issue. OPPI through an application seeking “impleadment” in the ongoing public interest litigation on the drug pricing issue in the Supreme Court, wants to be a formal party in the case. Sources said that the OPPI filed the application to engage with the government “more actively’’, and...
Read MoreAbbott, Dabur, GSK eye Jagdale’s energy drinks biz
A line-up of MNC and Indian bidders are in the fray to acquire home grown electrolyte energy drinks business of Jagdale Healthcare, which is on the block. GlaxoSmithKline Plc, Abbott Laboratories, Zydus Cadila, Wipro and Dabur are among the potential suitors for Jagdale’s OTC business for an estimated valuation of Rs 500 crore, said sources directly briefed on the matter. Bangalore-based Jagdale has appointed boutique investment bank Mape Advisory Group to find suitors for the business under the brand ORS-L. The brand, a patented fruit-based electrolyte drink, competes in the broader energy drinks segment that include players like Gatorade from PepsiCo. The brand...
Read MoreNew Policy to Cost Pharma Cos Rs. 1,500 cr
Stockists, traders may collectivey lose over Rs. 2,500 crore, says study; Lobby group wants price control only on 348 drugs The proposed national drug pricing policy will cost drug makers close to Rs. 1,500 crore and stockists and traders collectively over Rs. 2,500 crore in revenue loss when it comes into effect, a study shows. GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals’ loss has been pegged at Rs. 137 crore and Ranbaxy Laboratories’ at Rs. 115 crore, according to the study by pharmaceutical market research company AWACS. Others such as Abbott India, Zydus Cadila and Sanofi Aventis are projected to lose over Rs. 50 crore each. Under the draft national pharmaceutical pricing...
Read MoreGovt admits huge drug price differential
The National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM), 2011 has 348 medicines which cover 489 formulations, including 16 fixed dose combinations. These drugs are considered to be adequate to meet the common contemporary health needs of the general population of the country, the health ministry said. “It would be the general obligation of the health administrators to ensure abundant availability of these drugs,” it said. The bench agreed to give three months time to the government and posted the PIL filed by All India Drug Action Network for further hearing in January. However, it clarified, “Obviously, nobody would like prices of essential medicines to escalate in the...
Read MorePrices of 348 essential drugs to be controlled
New Delhi: The Centre on Thursday responded to the Supreme Court’s concern over spiralling prices of essential medicines and promised to make all-out efforts to put under strict price control regime all the 348 drugs included in the National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM), 2011. A bench comprising Justices G S Singhvi and S J Mukhopadhaya had, in the last hearing, expressed concern over the shrinking list of medicines under the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO) and had sought the Centre’s response on bringing NLEM medicines under price control regime. The government admitted that more than 300 drugs were under DPCO in the early 1980s which was subsequently...
Read More1 in 5 Indians have diabetes, high BP
One in every five Indian adults living in urban cities suffers not only from hypertension but also diabetes. In Maharashtra, more disturbingly, one in three persons is struck by the twin epidemic. These are some of the highlights of India’s largest clinic-based survey to assess the prevalence of diabetes and hypertension. The findings of the study, called Screening India’s Twin Epidemic (SITE), were announced on Monday in Mumbai.
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