The Times of India reports that the Department of Pharmaceuticals along with various other industry bodies have raised objections to the health ministry’s proposal to cap prices of essential medical devices. The department, which oversees production, availability and pricing of pharmaceutical products including medical devices, is of the view that industry should be given a chance for “self-regulation”, before the government steps in with price control measures.
Medical Device Daily quotes Amit Mookim, Country Principal at IMS Consulting Group, who said, “It will have an adverse impact on device manufacturers with returns on investments decreasing, which could further lead to reduction in new introductions or players withdrawing some products from the market.”
After receiving several complaints over companies selling imported stents for three or four times the actual landed cost in India, the Indian government plans to cap the price of cardiac stents, a market that is mostly dominated by imported products. The capping does not extend to bare metal and drug eluting stents for peripheral arteries.
“It definitely is good news for patients but one would have to wait to see if reductions in prices of medical devices would actually translate into reductions in packages and procedure prices ensuring benefits to the end consumer. Based on what we have seen in pharma, price control has limited impact on improving patient access,” said Mookim from IMS.
Several hundred drugs are listed under the National List of Essential Medicines to ensure poorer patients have greater access. However, critics say that this is not a sustainable strategy to facilitate equitable access.
Perhaps more significantly, says Medical Device Daily, the introduction of the price caps has also led to a drop in research and development into new products, discouraging companies, especially local small and mid-sized companies from expanding their capabilities and expertise.
