The national pharmaceutical industry expects an increase in the overall allocation of funds for the health sector, a focus on policies that encourage R&D activities and the continuation of tax breaks on various drugs in the next Union budget.
The industry is also looking to simplify various processes to improve the ease of doing business for private sector companies.
“An increase in the budget allocation from the current 1.8% of GDP to 2.5-3%, as foreseen in the National Health Policy 2017, as well as a separate allocation for R&D of the biopharmaceutical sector, is imperative,” the Organization of Pharmaceutical said. Chairman of Producers of India (OPPI), S Sridhar told PTI.
The industry has seen significant momentum over the past year, particularly to ensure access to COVID-19 vaccines and medicines and this year’s budget will be crucial to accelerating industry growth and access. to innovative health solutions for various diseases and not just COVID, he added.
Sridhar noted that the government should maintain the existing tariff concessions for medicines as any interruption in these under the current scenario will impact on the accessibility of these medicines at an affordable price. Import duty exemptions for innovative rare disease drugs developed globally, as proposed by the NPRD, should also be considered, he added.
“Additional measures to improve the ease of doing business in the pharmaceutical sector with a focus on simplification and making the process industry friendly, with specific provisions to remove bottlenecks, will encourage investment , thus contributing to the long-term growth of the industry, Indian Pharmaceutical Alliance (IPA) Secretary General Sudarshan Jain said that for the knowledge-driven pharmaceutical industry, innovation and R&D are essential.
“This will help address unmet patient needs in an affordable way. We look forward to the budget that will help fuel innovation and move the Indian pharmaceutical industry from manufacturing in India to discovery and manufacturing in India,” he added.
Health industry body NATHEALTH said that in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is crucial to create and develop integrated infrastructure and linked capabilities such as telemedicine, home care and care for the elderly so that people can equitably access essential and quality health services.
“The pandemic has made us aware of the need to equip hospitals in Tier 2 and 3 cities with adequate infrastructure such as diagnostic centers, oxygen beds, intensive care units and oxygen plants. through increased budgetary expenditure and greater investment. This will also help create employment opportunities and increase the resilience of the health system,” said NATHEALTH Chairman Harsh Mahajan.
The need of the hour is to allocate funds and introduce targeted professional and medical training programs that can address the shortage of qualified health personnel in the country, he added.
“The industry has not been able to reap the benefits of the GST transition. In fact, embedded taxes in the industry have increased in the post-GST regime compared to the pre-GST scenarios. Therefore, it Streamlining the GST is essential to unlock embedded credit that is trapped in the healthcare value chain,” Mahajan said.
The Union Budget 2022 will be presented on February 1 by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
(Only the title and image of this report may have been edited by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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