Pharmaceutical companies have refused to meet Minister of National Health Services Regulation and Coordination Saira Afzal Tarar, while the minister said that pharmaceutical companies can''t blackmail the government. Negotiations between 11 pharmaceutical companies and the government could not be held. All companies except one (10 out of 11) have refused to talk with government.
While talking to media outside Parliament House, the minister said that the government called 11 companies for talks, in which only one group came, but others did not come. She said that she already approached the court.
She said that nine companies are manufacturing hepatitis medicine, while the government has introduced medicines at a low price, whereas the regulation did not mean to increase prices of medicines.