All 348 drugs of National List of Essential Medicines to come under price control?

After the Supreme Court directive last week on regulating prices of essential medicines, the group of ministers led by agriculture minister Sharad Pawar will meet on September 20 to take a final view on bringing 348 essential medicines under price control. At present, the government regulates prices of 74 drugs under the Drug Price Control Order, 1995. The GoMs long-pending meeting will take a final view on the National Pharmaceutical Policy, which was drafted last year. The draft policy proposed that the ceiling price should be based on average prices of the three top-selling brands in each molecule. The Supreme Court has reportedly asked the government to come up with a decision on drug pricing within two weeks, failing which it will pass an interim order. [Reports Times of India]

The National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM), 2003 has been revised. The revised list, the NLEM, 2011 contains 348 drugs. While approving the list, the Minister of Health & Family Welfare has also approved that if affordable healthcare has to become a reality, all the medicines included in the NLEM, 2011 should be brought within the ambit of price control under the DPCO, considering the fact that the cost of medicines in the overall cost of healthcare constitutes more than 60% and a large percentage of our people do not have access to affordable healthcare.

As per National Institute of Public Finance and Policy 27 per cent of the sick never consult a doctor because they do not have required financial resources.

AS per Planning Commissions working group on drugs and food for the 12th Five-Year Plan countrys government public health sector caters to only 22 per cent of the population.

65 per cent citizens do not have access to essential medicines.

Over two thirds of the expenditure for healthcare is borne from out of pocket and accounts for an average increase in poverty by 3.6 per cent and 2.9 per cent for rural and urban India respectively. Medical treatment is the second most common cause of rural indebtedness.

39 million people are pushed into poverty every year because of illness.

According to WHO, essential medicines are those medicines that satisfy the healthcare needs of the majority of the population; they should, therefore, be available at all times in adequate amounts and in appropriate dosage forms, at a price the community can afford.

WHO has been publishing periodically, since 1978, a model list of essential medicines. Each country is encouraged to prepare its own list by taking into consideration local priorities. At present over 150 countries have published their official essential medicines list. The first NLEM by the Government of India was released in1996. The list was subsequently revised in 2003 and 2011. [Reports Deccan Herald]

S. No 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74

Alphabetical List of Medicines in NLEM 2011 25% Dextrose 5-Amino salicylic Acid 5-Fluorouracil Acetazolamide Acetyl Salicylic Acid Acriflavin+Glycerin Actinomycin D Activated Charcoal Acyclovir Adenosine Adrenaline Bitartrate Albendazole Albumin Allopurinol Alpha Interferon Alprazolam Aluminium Hydroxide + Magnesium Hydroxide Amikacin Amiodarone Amitriptyline Amlodipine Amoxicillin Amoxicillin+Clavulinic acid Amphotericin BPage 95 of 123 Ampicillin Anti-D immunoglobin (human) Antitetanus Human immunoglobin Artesunate (To be used only in combination with Sulfadoxine + Pyrimethamine) Ascorbic Acid Atenolol Atorvastatin Atracurium besylate Atropine Sulphate Azathioprine Azithromycin B.C.G Vaccine Barium Sulphate Beclomethasone Dipropionate Benzathine Benzylpenicillin Benzoin Compound Benzyl benzoate Betamethasone Betamethasone Dipropionate Betaxolol Hydrochloride Bisacodyl Bleaching Powder Bleomycin Bromocriptine Mesylate Bupivacaine HydrochloridePage 96 of 123 Busulphan Calamine Calcium carbonate Calcium gluconate Calcium Ipodate Carbamazepine Carbimazole Carboplatin Cefixime Cefotaxime Ceftazidime Ceftriaxone Cephalexin Cetrimide Cetrizine Chlorambucil Chloramphenicol Chlorhexidine Chloroquine phosphate Chlorpheniramine Maleate Chlorpromazine hydrochloride Ciprofloxacin Hydrochloride Cisplatin Clindamycin Clofazimine

75 76 77 78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109 110 111 112 113 114 115 116 117 118 119 120 121 122 123 124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134 135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142 143 144 145 146 147 148 149

Clomiphene citratePage 97 of 123 Clopidogrel Clotrimazole Cloxacillin Coal Tar Codeine phosphate Colchicine Condoms Co-Trimoxazole (Trimethoprim + Sulphamethoxazole) Cryoprecipitate Cyanocobalamin Cyclophosphamide Cyclosporine Cytosine arabinoside D.P.T Vaccine Dacarbazine Danazol Dapsone Daunorubicin Desferrioxamine mesylate Dexamethasone Dexchlorpheniramine Maleate Dextran-40 Dextran-70 Dextromethorphan Diazepam DiclofenacPage 98 of 123 Dicyclomine Hydrochloride Didanosine Diethylcarbamazine citrate Digoxin Dihydroergotamine Diloxanide Furoate Diltiazem Dimercaprol Diphtheria Antitoxin Dithranol Dobutamine Domperidone Dopamine Hydrochloride Doxorubicin Doxycycline Efavirenz EMLA cream Enalapril Maleate Enoxaparin Erythromycin Estolate Esmolol Ethambutol Ether Ethinylestradiol Ethinylestradiol + Levonorgesterol Ethinylestradiol + NorethisteronePage 99 of 123 Ethyl Alcohol 70% Etoposide Factor IX Complex (Coagulation Factors II,VII, IX, X) Factor VIII Concentrate Famotidine Fentanyl Ferrous Salt Filgrastim Fluconazole Flumazenil Fluorescein Fluoxetine hydrochloride Flutamide Folic Acid Folinic Acid Formaldehyde IP Framycetin Sulphate Fresh frozen plasma Furosemide Gemcitabine hydrochloride Gentamicin Gentian Violet

150 151 152 153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164 165 166 167 168 169 170 171 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210 211 212 213 214 215 216 217 218 219 220 221 222 223 224

Glibenclamide Glucagon Glucose Glucose with sodium chloridePage 100 of 123 Glutaraldehyde Glycerin Glyceryl Trinitrate Griseofulvin Haloperidol Halothane with vaporizer Heparin Sodium Hepatitis B Vaccine Homatropine Hormone Releasing IUD Hydrochlorothiazide Hydrocortisone sodium succinate Hydrogen Peroxide Hydroxychloroquine phosphate Hydroxyethyl Starch (Hetastarch) Hyoscine Butyl Bromide Ibuprofen Ifosfamide Imatinib Imipramine Indinavir Insulin Injection(Soluble) Intermediate Acting(Lente/NPH Insulin) Intraperitoneal Dialysis Solution Iodine Iopanoic AcidPage 101 of 123 Ipratropium bromide Iron Dextran Isoflurane Isoniazid Isosorbide 5 Mononitrate/Dinitrate Ispaghula IUD containing Copper Ketamine Hydrochloride L- Asparaginase Lamivudine Lamivudine + Nevirapine + Stavudine Lamivudine + Zidovudine Leflunomide Levodopa+ Carbidopa Levothyroxine Lignocaine Lignocaine Hydrochloride Lignocaine Hydrochloride + Adrenaline Lithium Carbonate Lorazepam Losartan Potassium Magnesium sulphate Mannitol Measles Vaccine Medroxy Progesterone Acetate MefloquinePage 102 of 123 Meglumine Iothalamate Meglumine Iotroxate Melphalan Mercaptopurine Mesna Metformin Methotrexate Methyl Cellulose Methyl Ergometrine Methyldopa MethylPrednisolone Methylrosanilinium Chloride (Gentian Violet) Methylthioninium chloride (Methylene blue) Metoclopramide Metoprolol Metronidazole Miconazole Midazolam Mifepristone

225 226 227 228 229 230 231 232 233 234 235 236 237 238 239 240 241 242 243 244 245 246 247 248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265 266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275 276 277 278 279 280 281 282 283 284 285 286 287 288 289 290 291 292 293 294 295 296 297 298

Misoprostol Mitomycin-C Morphine Sulphate Multivitamins (As per Schedule V of Drugs and Cosmetics Rules) N/2 Saline N/5 SalinePage 103 of 123 N-acetylcysteine Naloxone Nelfinavir Neomycin + Bacitracin Neostigmine Nevirapine Nicotinamide Nifedipine Nitrofurantoin Nitrous Oxide Norethisterone Normal Saline Nystatin Ofloxacin Olanzapine Omeprazole Ondansetron Oral Poliomyelitis vaccine (LA) Oral Rehydration Salts Oxaliplatin Oxygen Oxytocin Paclitaxel Pantoprazole Paracetamol PenicillaminePage 104 of 123 Pentamidine Isothionate Permethrin Pheniramine Maleate Phenobarbitone Phenylephrine Phenytoin Sodium Phytomenadione Pilocarpine Piperazine Platelet Rich Plasma Polygeline Polyvalent Antisnake Venom Potassium Chloride Potassium Permanganate Povidone Iodine Pralidoxime Chloride(2-PAM) Praziquantel Prednisolone Prednisolone Acetate Prednisolone Sodium Phosphate Premix Insulin 30:70 injection Primaquine Procainamide Hydrochloride Procarbazine Promethazine PropofolPage 105 of 123 Propranolol hydrochloride Propyliodone Protamine Sulphate Pyrazinamide Pyridostigmine Pyridoxine Pyrimethamine Quinine sulphate Rabies immunoglobin Rabies Vaccine Raloxifene Ranitidine Riboflavin Rifampicin Ringer Lactate Ritonavir

299 300 301 302 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 320 321 322 323 324 325 326 327 328 329 330 331 332 333 334 335 336 337 338 339 340 341 342 343 344 345 346 347 348

Salbutamol sulphate Salicylic Acid Saquinavir Sevoflurane Silver Sulphadiazine Sodium Bicarbonate Sodium Iothalamate Sodium Meglumine Diatrizoate Sodium Nitrite Sodium NitroprussidePage 106 of 123 Sodium Stibogluconate Sodium Thiosulphate Sodium Valproate Specific antisnake venom Spironolactone Stavudine Stavudine+Lamivudine Streptokinase Streptomycin Sulphate Succinyl choline chloride Sulfadoxine + Pyrimethamine Sulfasalazine Sulphacetamide Sodium Sulphadiazine Tamoxifen Citrate Terbutaline Sulphate Testosterone Tetanus Toxoid Tetracaine Hydrochloride Thiamine Thiopentone Sodium Timolol Maleate Tramadol Trihexyphenidyl Hydrochloride Tropicamide Tuberculin, Purified Protein derivative Page 107 of 123 Urokinase Vancomycin Hydrochloride Vecuronium Verapamil Vinblastine sulphate Vincristine Vitamin A Vitamin D (Ergocalciferol) Warfarin sodium Water for Injection Zidovudine Zidovudine+ Lamivudine+ Nevirapine Zinc Oxide Zinc Sulfate

(Source: http://pharmaceuticals.gov.in/NLEM.pdf)