The government may increase prices of all locally manufactured drugs up to 21 percent as Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) has moved an application for rationalising prices of all medicines produced locally.
"As the State Bank of Pakistan has indicated 21 percent inflation, the local pharma industry is compelled to move an application to Federal Health Minister Mir Aijaz Khan Jakhrani to increase drug prices up to 21 percent," PPMA Chairman Zahid Saeed told Business Recorder here on Saturday.
The government should include pharma industry in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) to fix rates of locally manufactured medicines and support local industry, which is on the verge of collapse, Saeed said. The Health Ministry should link CPI with pharma industry for rationalising drug prices as the inflation rate of the country is on constant increase, he added.
Prices of 200 essential medicines, which are manufactured in the country, were increased four months ago when supply of these drugs was stopped. The manufacturers had increased drug prices irrationally up to 80 percent for some essential drugs such as thyroxin, which is a life saving drug.
He said that present government is facing difficulties in increasing drug prices, as previous governments failed to increase medicine prices from time to time keeping in view the rising production cost. "In 2001, the government allowed just 4 percent increase and after a passage of eight years, pharma industry is now forced to demand 21 percent raise in conformity with the inflation rate indicated by the SBP," he added.
He admitted that sudden increase of 21 percent in all essential and common drugs would not be acceptable to both government and the masses but for the survival of the industry, it is imperative that drug prices must be raised. "If the government is reluctant to increase medicine prices outrightly, it should divide increment plan into phases but must provide some relief to the local industry," he suggested.
He said local pharma industry meets 90 percent requirement of the country and if our units would close due to manufacturing losses, Pakistan will be forced to import drugs from other countries on three times higher than local cost. He said due to increase in raw material and drug packaging cost, local industry will not survive with existing low prices.
He said that for last three years, the government is devising a comprehensive price policy for rapidly growing pharma industry, but it's yet to finalise this policy. He urged the government to evolve a comprehensive drug pricing policy and link prices with inflation rate to avoid difficulties in regulating drug prices in future.
He said that 23 percent increase was recorded last year in locally manufactured drug export, which this year seems unlikely due to use of substandard raw material and poor packaging. "Increase in export of locally manufactured goods would be helpful for the government to bring down trade deficit," he added. He demanded of the government to announce increase in all locally manufactured medicines to end uncertainty in the local industry.