The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed retail prices for 30 new drug formulations including those used for treating diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, infections and medicines for pain management and women’s health.
Breaking Down Price Caps
Major companies the decision will impact include Dr Reddy’s Labs, Zydus Lifesciences, Intas Pharma, Alkem Wellness, USV and Mankind Pharma.
The regulator enforced price caps on a few anti-diabetic combination drugs, fixing their retail prices in the range of Rs 9.79 to Rs 14.88 per tablet. Cardiovascular drugs featured in the list include atorvastatin-fenofibrate (used for cholesterol management), bisoprolol-Amlodipine (for hypertension), which have seen their retail prices capped between Rs 7.31 and Rs 18.46 per tablet.
Other key formulations covered include Vitamin D3 supplements, allergy medicine bilastine-montelukast, pain-relief combinations containing diclofenac, paracetamol and serratiopeptidase, and tacrolimus prolonged-release capsules used to prevent the body from rejecting a transplanted organ.
Legal Framework
The NPPA, under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilisers, primarily uses three distinct price-control mechanisms under the Drugs (Prices Control) Order (DPCO), 2013. Manufacturers of scheduled drugs cannot sell them above the notified ceiling price.
For “new drugs and new formulations”, NPPA separately fixes retail prices based on applications submitted by manufacturers. The latest changes relate to these new formulations where manufacturers must market them at or below the notified MRP, excluding GST. Additionally, NPPA manages a National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) that features scheduled drugs. The regulator fixes a ceiling price for these medicines, which are revised annually based on changes in the Wholesale Price Index (WPI).
For non-scheduled formulations, even though NPPA doesn’t have direct price control, drugmakers cannot increase the MRP by more than 10% in any 12-month period.
With the latest notification, at least 92 new drug formulations have been brought under NPPA’s retail price regulations in 2026.
The move is likely to benefit end consumers by preventing exorbitant pricing of newer combination therapies, many of which are prescribed for long-term usage to treat diabetes, hypertension and cardiovascular disorders.