The new Drug Price Control Order (DPCO), being finalized in tune with the new pharmaceutical pricing policy, may not include any provisions on fixing and monitoring  the prices of imported patented drugs, notwithstanding the recent developments.

The high-level panel is working on the draft of the DPCO which is likely to be announced sometime next month. But, the panel was not considering the issue of controlling or monitoring the prices of patented drugs at this stage as the Government was yet to take a decision on the mechanism on price negotiation of patented drugs, sources close to the panel disclosed.

There is no price control/monitoring for patented drugs as per existing provisions of DPCO' 95. However, there was speculation that the panel may discuss the issue in the wake of Department of Pharmaceuticals’ (DoP) panel submitting its draft report that recommended linking of price negotiation with the per capita income of the country.

However, the new DPCO will be revised to put clauses on fixing the prices of imported scheduled drugs in line with the list of essential medicines and the new pharmaceutical pricing policy, sources said.

For imported Scheduled Drugs, the landed cost forms the basis for fixing its price along with such margin, to cover selling and distribution expenses including interest and importer's profit, the maximum limit of which fifty percent of the landed cost, as per the existing DPCO. There is no control over Launch Price of the imported drugs and the prices are monitored in the same way as for other non - scheduled drug.

The DoP panel, in its report, also suggested setting up a committee headed by the chairman of the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) to decide the price of patented drugs before they are marketed for use in India.

“The originator company will submit to the Committee the government procurement price list of UK, Canada, France, Australia and New Zealand. In case the company has not launched its patented medicines in any one of the aforesaid countries, the company will submit the said price lists only in respect of those countries in which the medicines have been launched and are being procured by the respective Governments. The committee will take the per capita Gross National Income (with Purchasing Power Parity) of these countries. The ratio of the per capita income of a particular country to the per capita income of India would be calculated. The prices of the medicine would be worked out for India by dividing the price of the medicine in a particular country by this ratio and the lowest of these prices would be taken for negotiation for further reduction,” the report said.