Pakistan, currently going through a severe economic crisis, is struggling with high external debt and dwindling foreign exchange reserves.
The controversial pricing policy of Pakistan’s drug regulator and the devaluation of the local currency has led to severe shortages of imported drugs and lifesaving drugs in the debt-ridden country, media reported. news on Monday.
Pakistan, currently going through a severe economic crisis, is struggling with high external debt and dwindling foreign exchange reserves.
Catastrophic floods last June flooded a third of the country, displaced more than 33 million people, and caused economic losses of up to $12.5 billion to Pakistan’s ailing economy.
“Due to the strong depreciation of the Pakistani currency against the dollar and the controversial drug pricing policy of the Drugs Administration of Pakistan (DRAP), their prices have increased significantly and become economically unstable.
Importers can get them past the current price set by DRAP,” Abdul Mannan, an importer of pharmaceuticals and biologics, told The News.
Public and private healthcare facilities are facing severe shortages of imported vaccines, cancer therapies, fertility drugs and anaesthetic gases after suppliers cut off supplies due to the difference between the dollar and the rupee, according to the media
Although most oral medicines, including syrups, tablets and injections are produced locally, Pakistan imports a majority of biological products like vaccines, anti-cancer medicines and therapies from India, China, Russia, European countries as well as the United States and Turkey, Geo TV report said.
“The problem has become acute since DRAP has imposed a three-year restriction to apply under the hardship category under Drug Pricing Policy 2018.
It means that if a drug comes under the hardship category due to increased import price, the importer can apply only once in three years for price adjustment,” Mannan was quoted as saying in the report.
Pakistan is currently scrambling to boost its dwindling forex reserves, which are estimated to be at USD 4.8 billion after China refinanced USD 500 million last week.
Cash-strapped Pakistan is awaiting a much-needed USD 1.1 billion tranche of funding from the Washington-based global money lender, which was originally due to be disbursed in November last year.