Pharmaceutical companies raise prices arbitrarily

Pharmaceutical companies have significantly raised the prices of most of the medicines during last one month, a survey carried out by Business Recorder showed. Traders in different markets of the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad said that without government consent, medicine manufacturers have increased the prices of an entire range of medicines including lifesaving drugs.
Manufacturers, especially multinational medicine companies, have doubled the prices of some of the life saving drugs. Medicines, prices of which registered an increase are: Q-plex and kaopul gite (used to control diarrhea) witnessed an increase in price from Rs 18 to Rs 60, heperion (an anti-coagulant drug) available at Rs 175 a month ago is now being sold at Rs 400 in the black market, as it is not available in the open market due to artificial shortage, ventoline inhaler (use for asthma) is replaced with aerolean with an increased price of Rs 200 against the original price of Rs 100, amoxcil, palmonal (antibiotics) prices increased by Rs 10 each, leflux (antibiotic tablets) increased by Rs 15, penadole by Rs 5, bronocal and cincos syrup by Rs 10 each and theroxen prices increased from Rs 30 to Rs 50.
Dr Muhammad Ajmal of the Polyclinic hospital told Business Recorder that medicine prices have risen on the plea that raw material costs have increased manifold. The increase in medicine prices is 100 percent. He said that some importers and manufacturers have a monopoly in the market: first they create an artificial shortage and later increase prices. There is no proper mechanism to keep a check on these profiteers, Ajmal added.
He said that pharmaceutical companies have not only increased prices of medicines but have also created an artificial shortage in the market with several life saving drugs as well general medicines simply not available in the market. The next step is a massive rise in their prices.
President Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufactures Association Haroon Qasim said that due to increase in input costs, medicine prices have risen. They have sent several requests to the government to increase medicine prices by 20 percent; however, the government has time and again rejected these requests on the plea of public interest.
"Increase in medicine prices is inevitable as the pharmaceutical industry is on the verge of collapse" Haroon added. He further said that a summary on drug pricing policy was sent to the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) seeking government consent to allow pharmaceutical companies to increase drug prices, but the policy is yet to be approved.