The Telangana government is ready to take up with the Centre the case of pharmaceutical manufacturers, particularly their concerns about the drug pricing regime that the industry fears will eat into resources available for research towards innovative products.
“We will take the responsibility of advocacy,” Industries Minister K.T.Rama Rao told a CEO Conclave organized as part of the BioAsia 2017 here on Tuesday.
The State government could do “a bunch of things” for the industry, he replied on the scope available for such work given that the Centre decided on the drug prices. With Hyderabad contributing to over one-third of the country’s pharmaceutical production, Telangana could not only take up their case but also help in striking a balance between the cost of drug discovery and cost of delivery at the doorstep of the patient.
Underscoring the significance of innovation in pharmaceutical industry, Mr.Rao said some of the other ways in which the State government could facilitate its growth was with provision of good infrastructure and paving the way for more clinical trials. In this context, he cited the Pharma City to be established on 14,000 acres, near Hyderabad, by the State government as part of an effort to provide integrated facilities as well as different components of the eco-system in one project.
While stressing the need for government policies to be more predictable, the Minister said it was equally important for the drug makers to treat each market differently when it came to pricing with more benefits made available to the developing world.
President - Global R&D of GlaxoSmithKline UK Dr. Patrick Vallance said while pricing of a drug was influenced by volumes, a regulatory disharmonisation also contributed to the costs. Pharma industry, Global Head of Drug Development and CMO of Novartis Dr.Vas Narasimhan said, stood to gain by harnessing the benefits of big data and analytics.
While fixing prices of drugs, the government should take a holistic view of the healthcare sector, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd Chairman Satish Reddy said. Loading the costs further as a solution could be a big problem in terms of improving access to healthcare, he said. Chairman and managing director of Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd Glenn Saldanha said the pricing regime should not squeeze the industry of funds required for innovation. Managing Director of Wockhardt India Dr.Murtaza Khorakiwala spoke.
