Consumers already reeling from a hike in prices will now have to keep in mind the high drug prices in their household budgets. Actually, from tomorrow i.e. from April 1, the prices of many essential medicines are going to increase.
Essential medicines like pain relievers, anti-infectives, cardiac and antibiotics etc. will become costlier from April 1 as the government has allowed pharmaceutical companies to increase in line with the change in the annual wholesale price index (WPI). The National Pharma Pricing Authority (NPPA) has announced an increase of around 11 per cent in the prices of over 800 essential medicines.
Which drugs will cost more?
The medicines whose prices have been hiked are counted as essential medicines and they come in the National Essential List of Medicines (NLEM). These medicines are antibiotics, cold and cough medicines, anti-inflammatory drugs, ear, nose and throat medicines, antiseptics, pain killers, gas medicines and antifungal medicines. There are more than 800 medicines, two will be expensive. The prices of these medicines will now increase by 10.76% from April 1.
Paracetamol, most commonly used for fever, will also be expensive. Antibiotics like paracetamol and azithromycin used to treat bacterial infections, anti-anemic prescriptions like folic acid, vitamins and minerals are also included whose prices will increase.
Wholesale inflation is being said to be the main reason behind the increase in the prices of medicines. According to the data, the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based on wholesale inflation has changed by 10.76 per cent in 2021 from a year ago.
Historically, price increases due to annual changes in WPI have been modest – in the range of 1-2% – over the years. For 2019, the NPPA had allowed pharmaceutical companies to increase prices by around 2%, while in 2020 prices were increased by 0.5% in line with the change in the annual WPI. But this is the first time that the prices are being increased by 10 per cent.
The impact on the pockets of patients will increase
The steep hike in prices is logically justified but it may cause a lot of trouble to the people. Such an increase together can upset people.
Good news for the pharmaceutical industry
The development is welcome news for the industry, which has been battling an increase in manufacturing costs due to several factors. During the pandemic, the industry was hit by rising prices of raw materials (active pharmaceutical ingredients, or APIs), goods and plastics and packaging materials.