The National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) set up Price Monitoring and  Resource Unit (PMRU) in Jammu & Kashmir on April 1. The move assumes significance as PMRU will assist NPPA and state governments in checking overpricing of medicines and addressing local issues of shortages/hoarding in the current situation when the country is fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

What is the purpose of PMRU?

The NPPA requires organisational and financial support to implement the various provisions of the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Policy as well as the Drug Price Control Order (DPCO), 2013 in a speedy, effective and transparent manner.

NPPA is setting up Price Monitoring & Resource Units (PMRUs) under the Societies Registration Act across India for this purpose.

PMRU is a registered society of at least seven members under the chairmanship of the state drug controller and representatives of NPPA/state health department, civil societies and other stakeholders. 

PMRUs will be the key collaborating partners of NPPA with information gathering mechanism at grass-roots level. 

The unit is funded by NPPA for its recurring and non-recurring expenses.

PMRUs have already been set up by NPPA in 11 states — Kerala, Odisha, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, Nagaland, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Mizoram.

Objectives of PMRU

The objectives of setting up the PMRUs are to provide necessary technical assistance to the state drug controllers and NPPA towards:

1) Monitoring the notified prices of medicines, detection of violation of the provisions of DPCO, pricing compliance and ensuring availability of medicines.

2) Collection and compilation of market based data of scheduled as well as non-scheduled formulations and analyse them.

3) Collect test samples of medicines at the retailed market whenever required.

4) Conduct training, seminars and workshops at the state and district levels for consumer awareness related to the role and functions of NPPA and availability of alternative cheaper medicines.

Manorama Yearbook app is now available on Google Play Store and iOS App Store