Key facts
- The Indian government may lift price caps on cancer drugs cisplatin and carboplatin.
- This decision is due to rising raw material costs and shortages of these essential chemotherapy agents.
- The price increase could be up to 50% or more.
- The Department of Pharmaceuticals has approved invoking a rarely used provision to revise drug prices.
- Revised prices for cisplatin, carboplatin, and two anti-tetanus formulations are expected soon.
India's government is poised to potentially lift price caps on essential anti-cancer drugs cisplatin and carboplatin, a move that could lead to price increases of up to 50% or more. This decision stems from acute shortages of these widely used chemotherapy agents, driven by soaring raw material costs that have made production unviable under current price controls.
The Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) has granted in-principle approval to invoke Paragraph 19 of the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013, a provision allowing for price revisions beyond the standard annual ceiling in exceptional circumstances. This measure also covers two formulations of anti-tetanus immunoglobulin injection.
Manufacturers have been advocating for price hikes, with the current capped price for a 10 mg/ml carboplatin vial at ₹61.10 and cisplatin ranging from ₹70 to ₹300 per vial, depending on strength. The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is anticipated to announce the revised prices in the coming days.
Concerns over the drug shortage were amplified by Tata Memorial Cancer Hospital in Mumbai, a leading cancer treatment center, which highlighted alarming scarcity of carboplatin and cisplatin amidst rising cancer treatment demand across India. Oncologists have cautioned that prolonged supply disruptions could have potentially fatal consequences for thousands of cancer patients.
The DoP, in a letter dated June 7, instructed the NPPA to base price hike assessments on actual increases in raw material costs. A parliamentary standing committee formula, suggesting a maximum 50% hike in exceptional circumstances, has been cited as a benchmark, though actual cost data will be prioritized. Out of 82 applications for price increases due to rising API costs and other expenses, only four were recommended for revision by an inter-ministerial committee.