BT Buzz: Will new rules benefit patients and disrupt the pharmacy market?
According to S Eswara Reddy, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI), the new rules for regulating e-pharmacies are expected to make it mandatory for all online pharmacy players to get registered with the central government
- Aug 20, 2019,
- Updated Aug 20, 2019 3:01 PM IST
Imagine a young man living in the US uploading a doctor's prescription online and getting medicines delivered back home in India to his ageing parents. This could soon be a reality, according to S Eswara Reddy, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI). He says the government has finalised the rules after receiving comments from various stakeholders. The rules are currently under active consideration of the health ministry. Once approved, the new rules to regulate the sale of medicines online will come into force.
The current regulatory environment for e-pharmacies needs clarity, as two courts - Madras High Court and Delhi High Court - have given conflicting orders in past. The former stayed the ban on sale of medicines online, while the latter upheld the stay on sale.
Offline stores dominate the pharmacy space spread across 7-8 lakh retail outlets with a market size of around Rs 1,30,000 crore. Pharmacy chains such as Apollo Pharmacy and MedPlus lead the space. Different reports suggest online market size anywhere between Rs 3000 crore and Rs 7,000 crore with several small players and about half a dozen leading players such as Netmeds, 1mg and Medlife.
Dr Madhukar Gangadi, the founder of MedPlus chain of pharmacy stores, expects "more clarity on the definition of e-prescriptions" and hopes the government will try to address some questions such as how and when the measures would be put in place to enforce the new rules, what kind of prescription changes will be put in place for offline stores and measures to check unhealthy business practices. MedPlus is the second largest offline pharmacy chain in India after Apollo and has about 1700 stores across seven states - Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal. Meanwhile, offline pharmacy chains may launch their own online arms and start giving out digital bills and electronic receipts instead of paper bills.
Imagine a young man living in the US uploading a doctor's prescription online and getting medicines delivered back home in India to his ageing parents. This could soon be a reality, according to S Eswara Reddy, the Drug Controller General of India (DCGI). He says the government has finalised the rules after receiving comments from various stakeholders. The rules are currently under active consideration of the health ministry. Once approved, the new rules to regulate the sale of medicines online will come into force.
The current regulatory environment for e-pharmacies needs clarity, as two courts - Madras High Court and Delhi High Court - have given conflicting orders in past. The former stayed the ban on sale of medicines online, while the latter upheld the stay on sale.
Offline stores dominate the pharmacy space spread across 7-8 lakh retail outlets with a market size of around Rs 1,30,000 crore. Pharmacy chains such as Apollo Pharmacy and MedPlus lead the space. Different reports suggest online market size anywhere between Rs 3000 crore and Rs 7,000 crore with several small players and about half a dozen leading players such as Netmeds, 1mg and Medlife.
Dr Madhukar Gangadi, the founder of MedPlus chain of pharmacy stores, expects "more clarity on the definition of e-prescriptions" and hopes the government will try to address some questions such as how and when the measures would be put in place to enforce the new rules, what kind of prescription changes will be put in place for offline stores and measures to check unhealthy business practices. MedPlus is the second largest offline pharmacy chain in India after Apollo and has about 1700 stores across seven states - Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Odisha and West Bengal. Meanwhile, offline pharmacy chains may launch their own online arms and start giving out digital bills and electronic receipts instead of paper bills.