Your medicine bill is set to come down

Govt tells Lok Sabha that in the past 10 months, it has brought 350 more medicines under price control

Government today said 350 drugs had been brought under price control, providing additional benefit of over Rs 3,000 crore to customers, and rejected the charge that costs of some life-saving medicines had "sky-rocketed".

Chemical and Fertiliser Minister Ananth Kumar told Lok Sabha the government plans to have, in a few years, 3,000 Jan Aushadhi centres, where life-saving generic drugs are sold, up from the existing 98 and any member can have 10 such centres in their constituency.

The Centre will also come out with incentives to boost bulk drug industry, he said while noting that 60% of drug import costing Rs 12,000 crore is from China which he termed as a "health security concern".

He said the government in the last 10 months had brought about 350 more medicines under price control.

"There is a great misconception. Media has written about it, some members have also said it here that the price of some medicines has sky-rocketed. It is wrong," he said.

Citing an example, he said it was alleged that the cost of a cancer treatment medicine had risen to Rs 1.08 lakh for 30 tablets from Rs 8,500. As of today, its price is Rs 8,452, he said.

"Not only that, in the last 10 months nearly 350 more medicines, formulations needed for cancer, cardiovascular, diabetes, analgesic... Have been brought under drug price control... It has given a benefit of Rs 3,000 crore to customers," he said replying to debate on the Demands for Grants of his ministry which was later approved by a voice vote.

Government has also launched a toll-free number at which anybody can lodge complaint about scarcity, price or quality of any medicine.

Observing that pharma sector is a "sunrise" industry and India was producing 80,000 formulation and exporting medicines to over 200 countries, he said his ministry should be named Chemical, Fertilizer and Pharma Ministry.

"I will also request the Prime Minister," he said.