Cabinet defers decision on new pharma policy

The Cabinet today deferred the decision on the draft pharmaceutical pricing policy that aims to increase the number of essential medicines under price control from 74 to 348. "The decision on the pharma policy has been deferred," Finance Minister P Chidambaram told reporters after the Cabinet meeting.

Under the draft pharmaceutical pricing policy approved by the group of ministers, headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, prices of 348 essential medicines will be controlled. That apart, the draft policy aims at fixing prices based on weighted average of prices of all brands, which have more than 1 per cent market share.

Currently, 74 medicines are under price control. Last month, the Supreme Court had, however, asked the government not to alter the existing mechanism of cost-based drug pricing.