A long-standing ask from drugmakers, it was expected to expand such programmes to more patients on the drugs, or for more drugs to be supported by such PAPs. Almost a year on, and a day away from Budget 2026, there is little visibility if that has happened on the ground.
The Budget had listed innovative medicines from MSD Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Novartis, AstraZeneca, Johnson and Johnson, Merck Specialities, Takeda, GlaxoSmithKline, Roche and Bristol-Myers Squibb. These medicines are used in treating cancers, multiple sclerosis, severe anaemia and spinal muscular atrophy, among others.
While PAPs are useful, they are complicated, says Dr Kumar Prabhash, Professor and Head, solid tumors (adult) unit, Tata Memorial Hospital (Mumbai). “Everyone has their own design and no one has said that have they passed on the benefit,” Prabhash told businesslineadding that some companies may have decreased prices. These medicines are “beyond the reach of our patients…. it (PAP) does benefit our patient, but does it substantially increase the access? No, it doesn’t.” These PAPs cover patients paying for the medicines, but often leave out those covered by insurance, and that may not be the best way to approach access, he points out.
PAPs are sometimes designed to give a few doses free, alongside a few doses bought by the patient, say public health workers. The process is a good incremental step, but access to newer medicines and cutting-edge technology medicine requires the innovation to be done here, adds Prabhash.
KM Gopakumar with Third World Network, pointed out, “there is no publicly available information regarding the number of people benefiting from such programs. In the absence of accountability and transparency, PAPs fail to serve their real purpose of providing access to medicines. It is important that the government, rather than abdicating its responsibility for facilitating medicine access to non-transparent and unaccountable PAPs, take concrete legal and policy measures to ensure the availability of medicines at affordable prices.”
The pharmaceutical companies making the listed 13 medicines were contacted by businessline for an update on their respective PAPs, since the Budget announcement.
Enhancing access
Responding to businesslinePfizer said, it had been running assistance programs in India for some of its drugs, “under which patients enrolled in the programs received certain units of the drug(s) for free.” Pointing out that the effort enhanced access to lifesaving medicines, it said, “Since last year, there has been a waiver of the customs duty being paid on the volumes provided free to patients. The move was a welcome support to the pharmaceutical industry, and we appreciate the Government’s assistance in making healthcare more accessible and affordable for patients across the country.”
A response is awaited from Novartis, J&J, AstraZeneca, Roche and GlaxoSmithKline, while some others said they did not want to comment on the development.
Published on January 30, 2026
