ISLAMABAD, Sept 25: The draft approval of pharmaceutical policy by the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) was pro- industry and would provide an opportunity for the manufacturers to seek price hike, said Dr Zafar Mirza, while appreciating the government’s decision to set up Drug Registration and Pricing Authority (DRPA).

Dr Mirza, the executive coordinator of The Network for consumer protection told reporters here on Wednesday that the scope of the authority was still unclear though it was a step in the right direction.

He said its scope and mandate should be made clear and it should also address the issues of quality, safety, affordability and rational use of drugs.

The official handout released after ECC meeting did not contain any details in this regard.

Commenting on the draft policy, he said the decision to establish a board under the ministry of industries to review prices of previously registered drugs, was confusing and there was no need for such a board in the presence of an independent DRPA.

He said the draft policy did not use the word “deregulation,” but its contents suggested that it was leading towards deregulation and added that due to poor social indicators, Pakistan could not afford deregulation of health sector. There must be a strong regulatory mechanism to safeguard the interests of all stakeholders with special attention to consumer’s interest, he observed, adding that the present policy move was made under intense pressure of the multinational companies, which have been lobbying at the highest level.

About the decision of the drug registration with ministry of health and price control with industries ministry, he said it was a piece meal approach as the previous experience of regulatory authorities in other sectors had created serious apprehensions among the consumers about independence and transparency of such authorities.

“To ensure independence and consumer friendly posture of the proposed DRPA, consumers should be given significant representation in the process of finalizing the composition and terms of reference of the authority,” he demanded.

Dr Zafar said the decision of the ECC committee have raised a number of important questions which should be answered before finalizing things like where the DRPA will be housed and financed? How will public health concerns be addressed in the authority? What will be the precise criteria for deregulating/increasing the prices of drugs under the new regime? What will be the constitution of the DRPA?

He recalled that after the partial policy in 1993, the prices of medicines were increased from 400 per cent within a short span of few months.