'New drug policy will hurt Pharma sector'
Prices of various leading drug brands will come down by up to 80 per cent thanks to the newly-approved National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy but at the same time it will hurt investment sentiments in the country's pharmaceutical sector, according to industry bodies.
According to the Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) and Organisation of the Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI), the new drug policy would also adversely impact profitability of Indian pharmaceutical companies.
"A preliminary working shows that prices of many leading brands will be slashed by 50 per cent to 80 per cent. This will reduce industry profit by half to Rs 4,000 crore on domestic sale of Rs 67,500 crore," IPA Secretary General D G Shah said.
This will hurt investment climate in the country and may also deter companies from investing or expanding production capacity of National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) medicines, he added.
Expressing similar views, OPPI Director General Tapan J Ray said it will have an "immediate and significant adverse financial impact on the industry".
Ray, however, said the market-based pricing is "directionally prudent" for the country in the longer term.
"It will help improving both affordability and availability of medicines. Such a policy along with the government initiative to make essential medicines available free of cost through public hospitals and health centres will benefit all sections of the society, giving a boost to overall consumption of medicines in our country," Ray added.
The drug policy, which has been cleared by the Cabinet on November 22, will bring 348 essential drugs under
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