The government has banned 156 fixed-dose combination (FDCs) drugs-including antibiotics, antiallergics, painkillers, multivitamins and combination doses for treatment of fever and hypertension-after a review found they posed health risks in the biggest crackdown since 2016 when 344 FDCs were prohibited. FDCs are medicines that combine two or more drugs into a single dosage. The union health and family welfare ministry on Thursday issued a gazette notification, prohibiting manufacture, sale and distribution of these medicines based on the recommendation of an expert panel that evaluated 324 FDCs.
"The review of these FDCs started in 2019 and then Covid happened. The companies were heard and, thereafter, the committee gave its report at the end of 2021, recommending banning 156 FDCs," a member of the panel said on condition of anonymity. "This is the largest FDC ban since 2016," he added.
Some of the popular FDCs include a combination of mefenamic acid and paracetamol injection used for pain relief, fever and swelling, and omeprazole magnesium and dicyclomine HCl used for treatment of abdominal pain. The move could deal a blow to drugmakers including Sun Pharmaceuticals , Cipla , Dr Reddy's Laboratories (DRL), Torrent and Alkem, among others. According to the notification, the decision was taken following the recommendations of the Drug Technical Advisory Board (DTAB), the country's highest advisory body on drugs, and an expert committee formed by the government.
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