Medicines turn expensive amid war impact:Paracetamol, Azithromycin and chronic illness drugs see price pressure

Due to ongoing tension in the Middle East, disruption in the supply of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients coming from China, and an increase in gas prices, the threat of shutdown looms over Madhya Pradesh’s pharma industry. The rates of raw materials used in the pharma industry have increased by 30% to 50%. Even at these increased rates, the supply of raw materials is not happening, leading to a situation where work in pharma units has come to a halt. In MP’s 300 pharma units, drug production is now happening in only one shift instead of three. The result is that everyday medicines like Paracetamol, Azithromycin, and drugs for sugar and BP have become expensive. These problems in drug production in the pharma industry Dr. Anil Sabarwal, Secretary of the Indian Drugs Manufacturing Association (IDMP) MP, stated that due to the high cost of raw materials in drugs, increasing production rates has become a compulsion. The government’s DPCO, which is the Drug Enterprises Control Authority, has set a price, stating that you cannot sell anything more expensive than the fixed rate. Now overhead costs have increased. The production cost for 10 tablets is not even coming in at 15 rupees. In such a situation, the government gives a relaxation to increase rates by 20 to 25%, which it has already given. The pharma industry is experiencing affected availability of raw materials and packaging materials due to Middle East tensions. The supply chain is disrupted, costs are increasing, and a shortage of gas essential for the manufacturing of injectable drugs is also being observed in some places.
Increasing rates is a compulsion for pharmaceutical companies Rajeev Singhal, General Secretary of the All India Organization of Chemists and Druggists, stated that the medicines from MP’s pharmaceutical industry are mostly supplied to Middle East countries. Currently, there is a shortage of raw materials like API, solvents, and aluminum. Pharmaceutical companies have increased their rates after these problems. As far as the shutdown of the pharma industry is concerned, if raw materials, API, and solvents are not available, then a shutdown will be inevitable. However, its effect has not yet been seen on the common man. The government has already increased prices by more than 6.5 percent, which is done every year.
Supply of raw material coming from China stopped The maximum raw material for the production of medicines in the pharma industry comes from China. Currently, the supply chain of raw material coming from China has completely broken down. Kothari of Pithampur Association informed that the supply of raw materials coming from China, such as Diclofenac, Amoxy, Azithromycin, Para-aminophenol Ampicillin, Penicillin, and other drug solvents, has completely stopped. Production difficult without raw materials made from petrochemicals Sabharwal of the pharma industry stated that if petrochemicals have the biggest impact after the plastic industry, it is on the pharma industry. Propylene glycol, PG 400, PG 6000, PG 5000, acetone, MDC, isopropyl are made from petrochemicals. Medicines made without products from petrochemical-derived raw materials cannot even function. All of these are used for cleaning, finishing, and polishing medicines. These raw materials are needed to separate impurities. Problems regarding ampoules will increase Experts from the pharma industry say that in the coming time, the problem with ampoules, which are glass bottles in which injectable medicines are packed, will increase. Companies manufacturing injections are facing difficulties due to the irregular supply of LPG gas. The locking required for manufacturing injections can only be done with LPG. Locking is not proper with PNG. For locking, the glass needs to be melted within a fraction of seconds. PNG does not have enough pressure or heat to melt the glass within a fraction of seconds for locking. Companies manufacturing injections are also working on one shift instead of three.