• NMRA reviewing registered products to set MRPs
• Regulating 13 high-cost medicines to save an estimated Rs. 5.7 b  

The National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) is reviewing around 6,000 registered medicines as part of an ongoing process to set Maximum Retail Prices (MRPs) for all medicines registered in the country.

When contacted by The Sunday Morning, NMRA Chairman Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama said that the MRP would be assigned to brands when the NMRA issued or renewed their report licences and/or registration licences. According to him, the prices will be reviewed as part of an ongoing process.

Speaking at a media briefing on Thursday (1), Dr. Wijewickrama noted that Government measures to regulate the prices of 13 high-cost medicines were expected to generate savings of around Rs. 5.7 billion. 

These price reductions primarily cover medicines commonly prescribed for long-term treatment. This initiative is expected to ease some of the financial pressure faced by patients who need to purchase these medicines regularly, particularly those requiring continued treatment to manage chronic conditions.

According to him, the NMRA has obtained tender price information for 13 medicines from the State Pharmaceuticals Corporation (SPC) for 2023, 2024, and the current year. This estimate was then calculated by comparing tender prices paid by the SPC in 2024 with prices paid this year. 

“When we compare the prices in 2024 with those this year, the estimated savings for these 13 medicines is more than Rs. 5 billion,” he told The Sunday Morning.

However, Dr. Wijewickrama stressed that the saving should not be attributed solely to the introduction of price controls. 

“It is not exclusively due to price controls but due to more registrations being granted by the NMRA, timely ordering of medicines by the Medical Supplies Division (MSD), and timely placement and selection of tenders for these medicines by the SPC,” he said. “It’s a result of all three institutions working together in coordination over the last two years.”

Dr. Wijewickrama also said that the reported savings related to medicines purchased for the Government and should therefore be viewed as a saving for the country as a whole, rather than as a direct monthly reduction in medicine bills of private patients. 

“These are the medicines purchased for the Government. This is a saving for the country and for everybody.”

He assured that the regulator would analyse other medicines in the future, with the initial review focusing on the 13 high-cost medicines.

Speaking to The Sunday Morning, Government Medical Officers’ Association (GMOA) Spokesman Dr. Chamil Wijesinghe welcomed the NMRA’s move to expand price controls, saying the initiative could directly benefit patients who obtained treatment from the private sector. 

“Initially, we only had price restrictions for nearly 100 medicines. The current Chairman and the team are taking a positive step. We appreciate the initiative of maintaining quality and price controls,” Dr. Wijesinghe said.

He noted that approximately half of outpatient visits took place in the private sector, including private hospitals and general practitioner practices. By contrast, only around 5–10% of inpatient visits take place in the private sector.

“If there is price control, it definitely benefits the patient,” he said.

Dr. Wijesinghe said the country’s free healthcare system did not eliminate the financial burden faced by patients, particularly when medicines were unavailable at Government hospitals. He recalled that out-of-pocket expenditure – the amount patients pay for their own treatment – had been approximately 45% around 2021 and had risen above 50% during the economic crisis.

He said that the GMOA had repeatedly called for stronger price controls after exchange rates, fuel prices, and electricity costs had begun to stabilise. 

“We made repeated requests for price control regulations and to bring down the prices of the medicines, which would directly benefit patients,” he said.