Indian drugmakers seek to capitalize on US and other bids to lower cost

Even as US President Joe Biden called for the US Senate to approve his Build Back Better legislation to reduce the costs of prescription drugs provided through Medicare and cap out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors, including insulin at $35 per month, Indian drug manufacturers are expecting an even stronger focus on generics and biosimilars, reports The Pharma Letter’s India correspondent.

Generic drugs play an important role in the US system of health care, accounting for greater than 90% of total prescriptions dispensed in the US. One in every three pills consumed is produced by an Indian generics manufacturer, according to an April 2020 study by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and KPMG.

India is a key global supplier of affordable generic medicines, said an official at Pharmexcil (Pharmaceutical Export Promotion Council). India exported almost $4.2 billion worth of pharma products to the USA in the first six months of fiscal year 2021, which is almost 36% of the country's total exports of drugs and pharma products, he added. Total exports from India to the USA and the European Union make up about 55% of exports.