Uttar Pradesh food safety department orders hospital pharmacies to display medicine prices

The Uttar Pradesh Food Safety and Drug Administration (UPFSDA) has ordered all hospital-operated pharmacies across the state to display purchase and sale prices of medicines starting November 1.

Officials stated that the directive aims to improve price transparency, particularly for patients purchasing medicines from hospital pharmacies where alternative options may be limited. The department noted that the issue concerns supply chain transparency and ensuring that institutional procurement benefits reach patients directly.

Additionally, the UPFSDA has instructed all retail pharmacies to establish public websites featuring their license numbers, licensed premises, appointed pharmacists, and stock details, with updates required on a weekly basis.

The state drug administration has also sought action from the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) regarding drug overpricing. Following inspections of more than 200 pharmacies across 22 medical colleges and 30 government and private hospitals, authorities found that patients at some facilities were charged up to 67 times the actual procurement price.

In a letter addressed to the NPPA, UPFSDA Commissioner and Secretary Roshan Jacob highlighted a substantial gap between the price to retailer (PTR) paid by institutions and the final price charged to consumers. The department pointed out that while institutional purchases frequently involve high discounts negotiated with suppliers, patients are typically billed according to the printed Maximum Retail Price (MRP) and remain unaware of the actual procurement costs.

The inspections further revealed instances where identical brands and manufacturers listed different MRPs for separate institutional supplies, alongside concerns regarding contract-manufactured brands supplied to hospitals that are not easily accessible in general retail markets.

To address these pricing discrepancies, the UPFSDA has urged the NPPA to review trade margins, MRP fixation, and price controls on high-margin medicines and medical devices. The department recommended capping trade margins, establishing a rationalised MRP-fixing system based on manufacturing costs and post-manufacturing expenses, and incorporating high-margin hospital supplies into the price-control framework of the Drugs (Prices Control) Order, 2013 (DPCO-2013). Furthermore, the state authority has called for stricter enforcement of DPCO provisions, including potential inclusion of violations under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.