NEW DELHI: “Absolute rampage and broad daylight dacoity” — that’s how the Supreme Court described the issue of drug pricing on Tuesday, after learning that a drug supplied to retailers at Rs 2,700 is sold to patients at a whopping MRP of Rs 27,000.
The bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was hearing a PIL seeking mandatory generic prescriptions and price controls on non-scheduled medicines and medical devices.
“There are essential medicines for cancer for which MRP is Rs 27,000 and PTR (Price To Retailer) is Rs 2,700. That is absolute rampage and carnage and broad daylight dacoity with the patients. How can a patient be cheated for a medicine which the manufacturer sells to the retailer at Rs 2,700 and MRP is printed at Rs 27,000? It is surprising that the authorities who are supposed to take a decision on this are absolutely silent. We need not spell out the reasons for that,” Justice Mehta remarked.
Addressing the issue, as these whopping drug prices will have a serious impact on people, the court observed, “When patients are taking treatment under Ayushman Bharat scheme, this whole price has to be paid by the taxpayers. Hospitals are buying medicines at these prices and then reimbursing from the government. It’s ultimately taxpayer’s money. There is a clear-cut case of fraud.”
Responding to these observations, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) K M Nataraj replied that the government supports affordable access via Jan Aushadhi Kendras and will explore improvements.
Assuring that the government is taking the issue very seriously and in a non-adversarial approach, he said, “Medicine should reach the last person,” citing Jan Aushadhi Kendras.
The court noted the Drug Price Control Order leaves 82% of drugs outside ceiling price regulation, with NPPA controlling only around 1,000 scheduled drugs. No law fixes the launch price for non-scheduled drugs.
Petitioner Kishan Chand Jain said this vacuum lets companies inflate MRPs to offer fat margins. Justice Mehta questioned the regulator’s silence, hinting at extraneous reasons.
Using Rosuvas as an illustration, the court noted the non-scheduled version costs Rs 214 per strip, while the scheduled combination with aspirin costs Rs 70.
The bench linked overpricing to distress sales by families and to siphoning of public funds: under Ayushman Bharat, hospitals buy low and reimburse high at taxpayer expense.
The court will hear the matter again on September 29, when it will examine the proposals for initial price fixation and generic mandates.
