The National Medicines Regulatory Authority (NMRA) has released the maximum retail prices (MRP) of 350 medications, urging the public to report any individual or institution selling these products above the approved rates.
This announcement follows the Court of Appeal’s decision on Wednesday to lift an interim injunction that had previously barred the NMRA or its pricing committee from imposing price controls on any medicine “in respect of which price control has not already been issued.”
The plaintiffs in the case include the Sri Lanka Chamber of Pharmaceutical Industry (SLCPI), its president, senior vice president, and vice president, who have challenged the NMRA’s pricing regulation mechanism. The respondents are the NMRA, its pricing committee, and the Health Ministry.
The SLCPI argues that the NMRA—through its pricing committee and mechanism—is enforcing price controls that restrict its business operations. They also raised concerns over the non-publication of a detailed regulatory methodology. Additionally, they claim that strict price control could result in “a diminution in the quality of drugs,” noting that if prices are forced down, certain higher-quality or costlier medicines may no longer be imported.
In response, the NMRA published a detailed pricing mechanism in July this year, outlining a formula for determining the MRP of individual medicinal products. Recently approved by Parliament, the mechanism uses this formula and a maximum ceiling price (MCP) for each dosage and strength to regulate and enforce pricing, with violations subject to penalties.
Although price regulation has been in place since 2017, the Court of Appeal’s interim injunction halted price control activities by the NMRA’s pricing committee from December 2023 onward.
The MRP list released this week contains 350 entries, detailing the generic name, dosage form, strength, brand name, manufacturer, country of origin, and unit price in Sri Lankan rupees. Under the revised pricing structure, a 500mg paracetamol tablet will now cost Rs. 3.20; 300mg aspirin, Rs. 3.68 (or Rs. 4.50 for the 75mg delayed-release tablet) when sold in bulk; and 10mg atorvastatin, Rs. 4.50 in bulk.
The highest-priced items on the list include complex biological injections and vaccines, such as Basiliximab (LKR 275,000.00 per vial) and high-dose immunoglobulin infusions priced up to LKR 491,521.00 for 200 mL.
