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Karnataka Seeks Broader Price Controls on Life-Saving Drugs
10 Oct
Summary
- Karnataka requested extending price controls to cardiac and kidney drugs.
- The state welcomed Supreme Court observations on drug price mark-ups.
- Proposed 30% trade margin cap on non-scheduled cancer drugs is pending.
Bengaluru, Karnataka, recently requested the central government to extend proposed price controls beyond expensive cancer medicines to encompass other critical life-saving drugs used for cardiac and kidney ailments. This appeal follows the Supreme Court's critical observations regarding excessive price mark-ups on essential medications.
The state government formally requested the Union government to apply price capping to high-cost drugs for cardiac and kidney treatments. This initiative aims to significantly reduce the financial burden of treatment for ordinary citizens. The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority has already given in-principle approval to cap trade margins on identified non-scheduled anti-cancer medicines at 30% of their maximum retail price.
Previously, Karnataka had sought urgent national measures to address pricing concerns identified in 253 medicines and medical consumables. Inspections revealed substantial discrepancies between procurement costs and patient prices. The state also proposed mandating hospitals and pharmacies to disclose purchase costs, maximum retail prices, and additional margins on patient bills, especially for advanced chemotherapy and targeted therapy drugs.
