The National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) has been updated to include several anti-infectives, antibiotics, vaccines and anti-cancer drugs that will make these medications ‘affordable’
On Tuesday, the Union health ministry released the new National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM), making 34 new additions and dropping 26 drugs.
The list has been updated to include several anti-infectives, antibiotics, vaccines and anti-cancer drugs, which have been categorised into 27 therapeutic categories.
The revised NLEM, launched by Union ministers Mansukh Mandaviya and Dr Bharti Panwar, consists of 384 drugs approved by the central authorities.
The medicines in NLEM are marked in scheduled category and their price is controlled by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority.
But what are essential medicines? Which drugs have been included and removed from the updated NLEM? How will the patients benefit?
Let’s take a closer look:
Essential medicines
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), essential medicines satisfy the priority healthcare needs of a population.
“They are selected with due regard to disease prevalence and public health relevance, evidence of efficacy and safety and comparative cost-effectiveness. They are intended to be available in functioning health systems at all times, in appropriate dosage forms, of assured quality and at prices individuals and health systems can afford,” says the WHO.
NLEM’s significance
Releasing the list, Mandaviya said that NLEM ensures the “rational” use of medicines with a focus on three factors- cost, safety and efficacy.
“National List of Essential Medicines (NLEM) plays an important role in ensuring accessibility of affordable quality medicines at all levels of healthcare. This will give boost to cost-effective, quality medicines and contribute towards reduction in out-of-pocket expenditure on healthcare for the citizens,” he added.
The emergency medicines list is needed for “optimum utilization of healthcare resources and budget, drug procurement policies, health insurance, improving prescribing habits, medical education and training for UG and PG, and drafting pharmaceutical policies”, Mandaviya stated.
Anti-cancer drugs
The revised NLEM has added four major anti-cancer drugs – Bendamustine Hydrochloride (for certain blood and lymph node cancers), Irinotecan HCI Trihydrate (suggested for colorectal and pancreatic cancers), Lenalidomide (for treatment of myeloma and blood disorders called myelodysplastic syndromes) and Leuprolide acetate (a prostate cancer drug).
Four major anti-cancer drugs have been included in the emergency medicines list. News18 (Representational Image)
Dr YK Gupta, vice chairman, Standing National Committee on Medicines & Health Care Product, hailed the move to include these “affordable” anti-cancer drugs in the NLEM list, ANI reported.
Anti-infectives
Anti-infectives are drugs that help in preventing the spread and in treating infections.
“Antinfectives such as Ivermectine, Meropenem, Cefuroxime, Amikacin, Bedaquiline, Delamanid, Itraconazole ABC Dolutegravir have been added to the NLM,” Dr YK Gupta, vice chairman of the Standing National Committee on Medicines, was quoted as saying by PTI.
Endocrine medicines and contraceptives
Fludrocortisone, Ormeloxifene, insulin Glargine and Teneliglitin figure in the new list.
“It is positive that the diabetes section has been expanded to include Teneligliptin and insulin Glargine (Lantus). However, there was a need to include more synthetic insulins and other classes of oral antidiabetics, keeping in view the diabetes epidemic,” Malini Aisola, co-convener of All-India Drug Action Network, told Indian Express.
The new NLEM list has 34 new additions while 26 drugs have been removed. Firstpost
Replacement therapy
The list mentions psychotherapeutic drug Nicotine Replacement Therapy and Buprenorphine.
TB
Patented medicines Bedaquiline and Delaminid for Tuberculosis (TB) are on the essential medicines list.
Other drugs on the new list
Patented drugs including Dolutegravir for HIV, and Daclatasvir for Hepatitis C have been incorporated in the new list.
Montelukast, a medication that acts on the respiratory tract, ophthalmological drug Latanoprost, and cardiovascular medicines Dabigatran and Tenecteplase are also part of NLEM.
Moreover, the rotavirus vaccine has also been added to the list.
Drugs removed from NLEM 2022
As many as 26 drugs such as Ranitidine, Sucralfate, white petrolatum, Atenolol and Methyldopa have been taken off the National List of Essential Medicines.
As per News18, the salt in Ranitidine has come under scrutiny across the world due to cancer concerns.
It is prescribed in India for indigestion and heartburn among other stomach-related issues.
Other drugs – Alteplase, Bleaching Powder, Capreomycin, Cetrimide, Chlorpheniramine, Diloxanide furoate, Dimercaprol, Erythromycin, Ethinylestradiol, Ethinylestradiol(A) + Norethisterone (B), Ganciclovir, Kanamycin, Lamivudine (A) + Nevirapine (B) + Stavudine (C), Leflunomide, Nicotinamide, Pegylated interferon alfa 2a, Pegylated interferon alfa 2b, Pentamidine, Prilocaine (A) + Lignocaine (B), Procarbazine, Rifabutin and Stavudine (A) + Lamivudine (B) – have also been deleted from the list.
How do patients benefit?
The medicines that come under NLEM will become more affordable for the patients as the price cap will be decided by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority.
The WHO says selecting a limited number of essential medicines is necessary as it can lead to “improved access through streamlined procurement and distribution of quality-assured medicines, support more rational or appropriate prescribing and use and lower costs for both health care systems and for patients.”
With inputs from agencies
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