DRAP announces helpline against 'irregular' prices

Islamabad: The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) has recently taken charge of irregular drug prices on which hoarding and profiteering were being carried out across the nation.

The federal drug regulator has announced its toll-free helpline: 0800-03727 for the masses to report any wrongdoing by pharmacies and drug markets in terms of pricing and hoarding.

The availability of Actemra injection is being ensured everywhere as the drug authority takes due steps to curb any forged inflation and panic in the drug market, said DRAP in its announcement today as the Covid-19 pandemic continues to mar the health sector and economy.

Earlier this month, DRAP prohibited medical practitioners, via a circular, from writing brand names of medicines in prescriptions.

“The doctors in their prescriptions should write the generic formula of the medicines,” the regulatory authority said in its advisory.“The DRAP has made it unlawful for doctors to write the medicine’s manufacturer’s name in their prescriptions,” according to the circular.“It is a common practice that the private, as well as government hospitals’ doctors, write the ‘brand name’ of medicine in their prescriptions with an expensive price.” “The patients become overburdened to purchase expensive medicines of a specific brand,” the DRAP circular stated.