Daily Times

LAHORE: The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has increased the price of 80,000 medicines by 2.86 percent across the country, adding to the problems of poor patients, who were already suffering in the wake of high cost of drugs.

The government has increased the prices of medicines according to the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which currently stands at around three percent. According to a notification issued by the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHSR&C), the medicines under scheduled drugs, including hepatitis, heart, sugar, tuberculosis, cancer, asthma, allergy and kidney ailments, aids, anti-hypertension, anti-poisoning, endocrine, anti-anxiety, antibiotic, infusion and anti-ulcer, have been increased by 1.43 percent. The prices of antibiotic tablets, capsules, injections and skin diseases have been increased by 1.43 percent. Likewise, non-scheduled multi-vitamins, painkillers and epilepsy medicines have been increased by two percent while lower priced drugs increased up to 2.86 percent.

The notification further stated that the price of medicines have been increased by half of inflation, adding that the drug manufacturers would have to inform the DRAP 15 days prior to the increase in prices. However, the increase would not be applicable on sub-judice cases. The price increase shall not be applicable on the batches manufactured before the increase of authorised rates by the federal government. No recall of drugs of already marketed batches would be allowed. The revised material requirement planning (MRP) shall be printed on the label in a manner prescribed by the Drugs (Labeling and Packing) Rules 1986. No manufacturer, importer, retailer, hospital, clinic, wholeseller or distributor shall be allowed to affix stickers, overlapping or masking on prices. However, in order to save the packing materials, manufactures can reprint maximum retail price on the same through laser injection, after masking the previous MRP for packing of new stocks.

Noor Muhammad Mehar, a pharmacist having expertise in drug laws, said that this was the third time in last seven months that the prices of drugs were increased. He termed that this step from the government as a ‘joke’ with poor patients, leaving them stranded and helpless.

He said there was no mechanism or official websites for verification of prices in Pakistan, adding that DRAP has totally failed to control the prices, as it has no official pricing data on websites to declare systematic figures of any registered product.