pinkcheems OP t1_jdr635x wrote on March 26, 2023 at 3:28 PM

Reply to comment by readerOP in Private doctors in India are protesting against 'Right to health' bill. by pinkcheems

India is not a free market like USA. Especially drug prices in india are highly controlled by govt. You should read drug price control order (DPCO) act, 2013 of India. There is a formula provided by govt to calculate MRP of drugs. Here is the example how it is calculated- .

Calculation of ceiling price of a scheduled formulation.– (1) The ceiling price of a scheduled formulation of specified strengths and dosages as specified under the first schedule shall be calculated as under: Step1. First the Average Price to Retailer of the scheduled formulation i.e. P(s) shall be calculated as below: Average Price to Retailer, P(s) = (Sum of prices to retailer of all the brands and generic versions of the medicine having market share more than or equal to one percent of the total market turnover on the basis of moving annual turnover of that medicine) / (Total number of such brands and generic versions of the medicine having market share more than or equal to one percent of total market turnover on the basis of moving annual turnover for that medicine.) Step2. Thereafter, the ceiling price of the scheduled formulation i.e. P(c) shall be calculated as below: P(c) = P(s).(1+M/100), where P(s) = Average Price to Retailer for the same strength and dosage of the medicine as calculated in step1 above. M = % Margin to retailer and its value =16 (2) The ceiling price calculated as per sub-paragraph (1) and notified by the Government shall be applicable to scheduled imported formulations also.

readerOP t1_jdrb1wt wrote on March 26, 2023 at 4:03 PM

i think we both are arguing the same point but from different pov, yes there is dpco and subsidiaries exist for this exact reason, the trick is doctors don't directly stock, instead are mediated by the 'nearest' pharmacy, where they carry all brands so they aren't breaking laws, but companies use their expensive subsidiaries, the real profit is not in the drugs that directly treat, but in schedule H analgesics and antipyretics that doctors pad the prescriptions with. Schedule H formulation are quite flexible and companies use this loop hole to push expensive schedule H generic alternatives which if you read carefully are almost similar and could be easily replaceable by dolo or brufein (has a doctor in our family hence i know this) most of the profit is from these than the main drugs that treat whatever condition. Even some doctors don't like this but it's not that big of a deal and helps pay the bills, so they go along.