BENGALURU: National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) will review its decision of price capping on coronary stents, which came into force on February 13 last year with validity for one year, on Monday. On January 31, NPPA met 10 intervention cardiologists from across the country and realised that the number of angioplasties has risen across the country.
A senior NPPA official told The New Indian Express, “Cardiologists from Lucknow, Shillong, Delhi, Chandigarh and Pune came. They feel that the prices of some high-end stents should be increased so that they are not withdrawn from the market.
“Most of them feel there should be a third category of stents and doors should be open for future technology. Stakeholders may say something within the meeting and (something else) outside the meeting. We know what interests are involved. Cardiologists say the number of angioplasties have increased and private hospitals have passed on sizeable benefits to the patient. What associations like AdvaMed are saying is just misinformation. Doctors feel a government-run registry should be maintained for angioplasties,” the official said.
However, there is no data to support the claim that the number of angioplasties has gone up due to stent price capping as the total benefit of prices is not being passed on to the patients. The NPPA is scheduled to meet associations representing multinational stent manufacturing companies.
Dr K K Agarwal, president, Heart Care Foundation and former president of Indian Medical Association, said, “Abbott Laboratories refused to introduce its latest stent Xience Sierra in India in November last year. Earlier in September, it had received permission to withdraw its premium Xience Alpine metallic stents as well as its dissolving stents. The stent price cap was also discussed at the October 26 US India Trade Policy Forum in Washington DC.”
He said, “In September, the US trade representative wrote to the Indian Commerce Minister and the Prime Minister’s Principal Secretary that the policy had created serious problems for US stent makers in India. The matter was also discussed during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington in June.”