Indian drug industry opposes price caps
Government wants free healthcare for poorest people, but companies claim controls will stifle innovation
India’s ongoing programme of capping drug prices has led the pharmaceutical industry to protest against the government. While the controls aim to make medicines available to the poor, pharma groups say the step is short-sighted and will stifle innovation.
The government considers medicines to be overpriced and unaffordable, especially to the poor. It justifies price regulation as a way to guarantee health services to citizens, particularly the underprivileged. The new National Health Policy (NHP) unveiled in parliament calls for a move away from responsive ‘sick care’ to more proactive ‘wellness’. The policy also includes commitments to eliminate several diseases that affect the poor: kala azar (visceral leishmaniasis) and filariasis by 2017; leprosy by 2018; measles by 2020; tuberculosis by 2025; and malaria by 2030.