Minister directs DRAP to clear pending drug pricing cases
Ahad Cheema, chairing a review meeting in Islamabad, said the pricing formula must be people-centred and must not block importers or pharmaceutical firms.
Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Establishment Division Senator Ahad Cheema directed the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) on Monday to move pending drug-pricing cases forward for further processing, after officials told a review meeting that case-by-case evaluation of the backlog was almost complete.
Cheema chaired the meeting in Islamabad to review the pending cases and the existing pricing formula, according to a press release carried by the Associated Press of Pakistan. TechJuice reported that the meeting was held on 26 October.
The minister said the pricing formula should be people-centred and should not create unnecessary hurdles for importers or the pharmaceutical sector. According to TechJuice, he called for a mechanism that uses international benchmarks while keeping the process workable for importers and drug companies, and urged DRAP to consider specialised drug-pricing databases to support independent assessments. He said unjustified price increases were unacceptable.
The meeting was told that DRAP is examining provisions in the current formula that may hinder accurate price determination. Officials briefed the participants that the review of pending cases, taken one at a time, was nearing completion, and Cheema appreciated the progress made so far.
On the vaccine side, officials informed the meeting that sufficient quantities of the World Health Organization-recommended trivalent flu vaccine were available in the market. On that basis, DRAP withdrew the vaccine's hardship case.
Federal Minister for Climate Change Dr Musadik Malik, Health Secretary Momin Agha, DRAP CEO Dr Obaidullah and other senior officials attended the meeting.
Neither the press release carried by APP nor TechJuice's report said how many pricing cases remain pending, which specific provisions of the formula are under examination, or when the review is expected to conclude. No revised formula or new price list was announced at the meeting.
Drug pricing is decided centrally through DRAP, and any change to the formula or to individual case decisions affects medicine prices across the country, including in Gilgit-Baltistan, where supplies arrive through the Karakoram Highway and other northern routes.
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