Pakistan
Pakistan: Medicines to cost higher, Remdesivir price reduced
Islamabad/UNI: Pakistan government has decided to increase price of 94 lifesaving drugs while the cost of Remdesivir, an experimental drug used for the treatment of Covid-19 was reduced to Rs 8,244 from Rs 10,873, reports said on Wednesday.
Special Assistant to Prime Minister on National Health Services Dr Faisal Sultan, in a press conference said to address long-term shortage of some key or lifesaving medicines, the federal cabinet has allowed rationalizing prices of drugs that had been reported to be in short supply due to unrealistically low prices.
"When these drugs are not available in the market, patients are compelled to use costly smuggled drugs," Dawn reported quoting special assistant as saying.
He said the drugs whose prices have been allowed to increase include medicines such as furosemide injections for emergency use in high blood pressure; acetazolamide tablets for glaucoma; hydralazine tablets for lowering blood pressure and carbamazepine tablets and suspension for epilepsy.
Country's Health Ministry later in a statement said that cabinet gave approval for fixing the maximum retail prices (MRPs) of the medicines and these MRPs will remain static till June 30, 2021.
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