• Plans to include new essential medicines to the list
• Gazette to be sent to the Health Ministry

Steps are to be taken to enhance the existing list of Maximum Retail Price (MRP)-declared medicines by incorporating new varieties of commonly-used essential medicines, the National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) said yesterday (2).  

Speaking to The Sunday Morning, NMRA Chairman Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama said: “The final decision has been taken regarding the MRP on commonly-used essential medicines. For individual products, we haven’t finalised yet. The MRP will be gazetted by the Health Minister.”

When asked about the methodology for price revisions, the Chairman said: “It is not based on percentage. It will be based on market prices and values. We used the method used in India. That was the method which was used previously to prescribe the MRP.”

“Already 60 products are in this MRP category. We want to increase the number and add some more essential ones. The same mechanism will be used. It was the same method we used in 2019,” he added.

Highlighting the procedural aspect, Dr. Wijewickrama explained: “The Minister has to gazette it. We are in the process of drafting and then we will send it to the ministry.”

Health experts recently revealed that another potential pharmaceutical price hike was in the offing as the industry awaits an evaluation of prices to reflect the indirect impact of the Value-Added Tax (VAT) and exchange rate fluctuations.

It is learnt that the industry is once again seeking a nearly 12% hike.

If prices increase again, local pharmacists claim that consumers will not be able to afford prescribed medicines as sales have dropped by around 30% since the first price revision. 

In June last year the Health Ministry issued a gazette revising the MRPs of 60 types of medicines. The prices of these medicines were reduced by 16% with effect from 26 June 2023, according to the recently-issued gazette.

From 2021 to 2022, prices were revised thrice due to exchange rate fluctuations, with increases of 9%, 29%, and 40%, respectively. In 2021, medicine prices saw a 9% increase and in 2022 local pharmaceutical prices were revised twice to address the gap caused by the drastic devaluation of the rupee in 2021. In March 2022, the prices of 60 essential medicines were raised by 29% through an Extraordinary Gazette notification.

Meanwhile, All-Island Private Pharmacy Owners’ Association (AIPPOA) President Chandika Gankanda said the substantial decrease in consumers’ purchasing power amid the current severe economic crisis had resulted in a shift towards essential health needs and a reliance on more affordable medications.

Gankanda emphasised: “Most consumers have cut down their health needs only to the essentials. Unlike before, most people are now heavily relying on cheaper medicines and that is also only when it is necessary.”

Against this backdrop, the AIPPOA has urged the Government to remove price controls on 60 specified medicines and institute a unified pricing formula for all medications based on their Cost, Insurance, and Freight (CIF) values.

Expressing concerns, Gankanda noted that Sri Lanka faced the risk of losing access to high-quality pharmaceutical products due to the Government’s imposition of price controls on these 60 medicines. 

He stated: “When compared with the size of the pharmaceutical markets, Sri Lanka is a small market which the major pharmaceutical companies are not even considering investing in. Therefore, when the prices are not met, they withdraw from the market. This affects the availability of quality products.”

Gankanda added: “These highly-recognised international brands will not be available in the future unless the right prices are given. Even if the prices are rearranged, those who can afford it will buy quality products while the rest will have no choice but to opt for cheaper medicines. This is the worst part of this crisis.”

Underlining the impracticality of controlling only 60 out of approximately 1,200 medicines in Sri Lanka, Gankanda stressed: “This is not practical.”

The AIPPOA President also urged a comprehensive approach to address the challenges posed by the economic crisis to the pharmaceutical sector.