India's pharmaceutical pricing regulator has established new retail price points for dozens of medications, significantly impacting the diabetes and hypertension treatment markets following a key patent expiration.
The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) fixed retail prices for 84 new drug formulations during its 132nd meeting held on April 29, 2025, under the chairmanship of P Krishnamurthy. The decision comes in the wake of Boehringer Ingelheim's empagliflozin patent expiry on March 11, 2025.
Empagliflozin Market Opens to Generic Competition
The pricing authority approved retail prices for 36 drug combinations containing empagliflozin, a significant development for diabetes care in India. With the patent expiration, multiple pharmaceutical companies have entered the market with generic versions of the medication.
Companies receiving price approvals for empagliflozin combinations include Corona Remedies, Skymap Pharmaceuticals, Mankind Pharma, MacLeod's Pharmaceuticals, Zuventus Healthcare, German Remedies Pharmaceuticals, Alkem Laboratories, Jagsonpal Pharmaceuticals, Lupin Ltd, and Micro Labs.
Prior to these approvals, Boehringer Ingelheim India Pvt Ltd (BIIPL) had filed representations against the retail prices recommended by NPPA's Multi Disciplinary Committee (MDC) of Experts. The company requested recalculation of retail prices considering only the prices of authorized brands—Jardiance, Gibtulo, and Cospiaq. However, the Authority determined that the issues raised did not impact the recommended prices.
Broader Range of Medications Affected
Beyond empagliflozin combinations, the NPPA's pricing decisions encompass a wide range of essential medications:
Anti-Diabetic Medications
The authority fixed prices for various other anti-diabetic combination drugs containing glimepiride, dapagliflozin, and sitagliptin, based on applications from marketing firms including USV Ltd and Mankind Pharma.
Cardiovascular Medications
Retail prices were established for blood pressure drug combinations containing telmisartan, cilnidipine, and metoprolol succinate extended release formulations.
Anti-Inflammatory and Other Formulations
The pricing authority also addressed combinations such as paracetamol with phenylephrine hydrochloride and chlorpheniramine maleate tablets, as well as mefenamic acid with paracetamol.
Regulatory Compliance Actions
The NPPA took additional steps to regulate products that had been launched without proper price approval. Prices were fixed for paracetamol infusion from Hetero Healthcare, L-Carnitine with methylcobalamin and folic acid tablets from Ozone Pharmaceuticals, and a combination of rosuvastatin, aspirin, and clopidogrel tablets from Unimed Technologies.
For these non-compliant products, the Authority approved "the lowest of the launched price, worked out price and claimed price, if any," according to the meeting notes.
Vitamin Supplement Price Revisions
The meeting also resulted in price revisions for certain vitamin supplements. The retail price of cholecalciferol (vitamin D3) oral solution 60,000 IU in nano droplet form from German Remedies was revised to Rs 14.94 per ml, based on data reconfirmation from Pharmarack. Similarly, Cipla Ltd's cholecalciferol oral solution price was adjusted to Rs 15.03 per ml.
These pricing decisions represent significant regulatory action in India's pharmaceutical market, particularly for diabetes management, where the availability of more affordable empagliflozin combinations could potentially improve access to modern diabetes therapies for patients across the country.
