SC lauded for taking notice of illegal drug price hike

Supreme Court grants another gift to poor of Pakistan

Action demanded against officials involved in the mega scam

Impact of unlawful drug price hike calculated at Rs 90 billion annually

Dated: September 20

Civil society has lauded the Supreme Court (SC) for putting twenty-two pharmaceutical firms on notice for illegal overpricing of drugs on false grounds pushing healthcare out of the reach of millions of the downtrodden.

Many local and multinational companies are exploiting masses with the help of health authorities therefore the government functionaries should also be taken to the task, said President Health Watch Mian Aftab.

Talking to representatives of the civil society, he said that SC has again moved to safeguard the rights of masses and that every penny looted by the pharma mafia should be recovered.

He said that the SC move is another gift to the people and a turning point in the history of Pakistan which will save the poor from brutal onslaught of multinationals prone to increasing their wealth on the cost of downtrodden.

Mian Aftab said that this is a scandal bigger than the Ephedrine scam but media and civil society is not bothered about it since no big names are involved.

He added that the federal government on July 13, 2012 reduced prices of 92 pharma products but influential company Rocha refused to cut price and continued to sell Pegasys, used for treatment of hepatitis, at Rs 1300 against the fixed price of Rs 6500. The company is making Rs 2billion annually from selling the medicine.

He said that some of the companies involved in illegal extortion of money from poor include Martin Dow, High Noon, Searl and CCl Lahore. The growth of Martin Dow due to arbitrary increase has gone up to 37 per cent from 2 pc. Rotacap, a product of Highnoon which was previously sold at Rs 182 is now priced at Rs 1040, an increase of 471 per cent.

Searle Pakistan has illogically increased the price of Paediatric (ORS Sachet) from Rs 10 to Rs 27, a hike of 170 pc and price of Hydryline Syrup from Rs 30 to Rs 59, an increase of 99 pc which is illegal and unethical. The total sale of ORS is Rs 667 million per annum while the price hike has burdened masses by another Rs1267 million.

Sale of Hydryline Syrup is at Rs 623 million and with the present increase of 99 pc it will go up to Rs 1246 million. Likewise, CCL Lahore has increased price of Pulmonol Junior Syrup Rs 22, a 122 pc surge in the price, he informed.

At the occasion, Dr. Murtaza Mughal said that pharma industry is acting like a mafia and the situation speaks of rampant corruption in the ministries while the end-user is the ultimate victim who is made to pay Rs 90 billion additionally per annum.