Amidst petrol, power hike- NHS cuts prices of medicines

ISLAMABAD: A notification was recently issued by the Ministry of National Health Services (NHS) stating that the prices of 89 essential medicines have been reduced by 15pc. The ministry announced that the reduced prices had come to force with immediate effect.

While addressing to the media in this regard, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Health Dr Zafar Mirza told that the federal cabinet had decided to decrease the prices of the 89 medicines in line with the Pricing Policy of 2018. Under the policy, prices of innovator drugs have to be decreased by 10pc three years after their launch in the market. However, considering all the aspects it was decided to decrease the prices by 15pc, he said.

Earlier, Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) accused the ministry of NHS of misleading the nation by claiming that the cabinet had reduced the prices of 89 medicines. The association claimed that it was a six-month-old decision which was announced again after the cabinet meeting. The association also shared a notification issued by the ministry in past, where pharmaceutical companies had been directed to reduce the prices of 89 medicines.

However, the ministry claimed that the prices of medicines were finally reduced as the notification had been published in the gazette of Pakistan.

It is pertinent to mention here that The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) has recommended in a summary sent to the government that prices of petroleum products should be increased by up to 3.2% for January 2020. Meanwhile, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) has increased power tariff for the K-Electric from Rs12.817 to Rs17.69/unit.