Drug authority asked to address foreign investors’ concerns

KARACHI: The Board of Investment (BoI) has asked the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) to address the concerns of foreign investors in the pharmaceutical sector about draft pricing policy for drugs.
The board has written to DRAP that foreign investors in the pharmaceutical industry were concerned about the draft pricing policy sent to the prime minister for approval by the authority.
The letter comes at a time when the pharmaceutical industry is demanding a fair, transparent, and investor friendly drug pricing policy, enabling the industry to plan future expansion and investments.
According to the industry, the prices of medicines in general have been frozen for the last 14 years.
The industry has been demanding a transparent pricing mechanism, in the absence of which, five multinationals have already left and some minimised operations.
Moreover, some local companies too were contemplating to shift their manufacturing operations to some regional countries.
The industry in almost a consensus has suggested DRAP to follow the World Health Organisation (WHO) guideline and introduce a reference pricing system which will benefit both the consumer and industry alike.
“In most cases, the prices charged by multinational pharmaceutical companies in Pakistan are already lower than the regional average and the proposed reduction of 45 percent by the authority on prices of scheduled drugs would render many of the lifesaving medicines unviable, leaving patients at the mercy of poor quality medicines,” the letter from BoI quoted.
Many pharma giants including Johnson & Johnson, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Merck Sharp & Dohme Limited (MSD), Searle Pharmaceuticals, and Organon have left the country.
The prolonged unsettled issues and attitude of the government towards this sensitive industry has forced global pharmaceutical giants to wrap up their business in Pakistan. Also, this has been hindering foreign investors, working in the country, or willing to invest in the pharmaceutical and other industries.