Govt approves higher prices for critical cancer drugs amid supply crisis
In a critical move to avert a deepening healthcare catastrophe, the Central Government of India has granted in-principle approval for price increases on four essential medicines, including the cornerstone platinum-based chemotherapy drugs, cisplatin and carboplatin. This emergency intervention, approved by the Department of Pharmaceuticals on June 7, comes as a severe nationwide shortage, driven by skyrocketing global raw material costs and rigid price controls, paralyzes cancer treatment across the country. The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) is now tasked with determining the precise extent of these hikes, which could range from 10% to 50% from previous fixations, potentially impacting thousands of cancer patients already battling a costly disease.
