The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has capped trade margins on 137 identified non-scheduled anti-cancer drugs at 30% of their maximum retail price, a move expected to reduce MRPs by up to 70%, depending on existing price structures.
The revised prices will take effect on November 9, under a Gazette notification issued on October 17. The intervention aims to curb excessive distribution and retail margins and ease the financial burden of cancer treatment.
The drugs covered include immunotherapies used to treat more than 20 types of cancer, denosumab used by breast and prostate cancer patients, pegfilgrastim used to prevent neutropenia in cancer patients, and bevacizumab, approved for treating colon, ovarian and cervical cancers.
Widely used medicines such as pembrolizumab, durvalumab and osimertinib are also covered, with the revised pricing expected to improve patient access.
The decision builds on NPPA’s 2019 pilot trade margin rationalisation exercise, which capped margins on 42 anti-cancer drugs at 30%. That intervention reduced the MRPs of 526 brands of non-scheduled anti-cancer medicines by up to 90%.
The expanded list was recommended by an expert committee under the Directorate General of Health Services, comprising oncologists, medical specialists, hospital experts and government officials. The list will be updated periodically.
NPPA imposed the cap under Paragraph 19 of the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013.
Manufacturers must inform the authority of revised prices within seven days of publication of the notification. They must also publish price lists on their websites and circulate them widely to retailers and hospitals.
From November 9, retailers and hospitals must charge the reduced prices and display the revised lists in their pharmacies. Hospitals must also prominently publish the prices on their websites.
Consumers can check revised medicine prices through the Pharma Sahi Daam app and the NPPA website.
As a substantial share of anti-cancer medicines is supplied directly to hospitals and medical institutions, these facilities will be responsible for implementing the revised prices. State Drug Controllers will oversee compliance by manufacturers, dealers, retailers, hospitals and medical institutions.
Pharmaceutical companies must maintain current production and supply levels of the notified formulations to ensure uninterrupted availability.
The authority said the measure seeks to control excessive trade margins while safeguarding legitimate manufacturer revenues and preventing artificial shortages, supporting more equitable access to cancer treatment.
