A meeting of the caretaker federal cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar has okayed a proposal to increase the prices of 146 medicines amid exorbitant raw material prices worldwide.
The Ministry of National Health told the cabinet on Thursday that costs of raw materials for pharmaceuticals are rising. Consequently, the federal cabinet approved an increase in medicine prices.
Kakar said at the meeting that the government is trying to get medicines to the general public at affordable rates.
He urged stakeholders to devise proposals to improve the performance of the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP). He sought new suggestions per existing regulations on price deregulation so that the next elected government could present them to parliament.
The federal cabinet also approved the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP) and the State Administration of Market Regulation (SAMR) China, as recommended by the Finance Ministry. Everyone present was apprised that the signing of the MoU would enhance information sharing between the two countries, among other things.
