KARACHI: The government has continued to delay approving price notifications for advanced life-saving drugs for over six months. The federal cabinet has met several times with the new medicine price tagging on its agenda, but the persistent delay in decision-making has halted the introduction of the latest medicines in Pakistan.
“The list of the medicines awaiting the government price notifications has expanded to 60 to 70 drugs over the past six to eight months, leaving them inaccessible to patients suffering from cancer, heart disease, and hypertension,” Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA) former chairman Tauqeer Ul Haq told Business Recorder.
According to details, the government holds the power to determine and notify prices of essential medicines – the life-saving drugs. Pharmaceutical companies have reported that they have continued to submit applications for setting prices of the essential medicines to the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP), accumulating the list of the therapies to around 60 to 70 in the under review period.
These medicines include advanced treatments for heart disease, blood pressure, and cancer. They are set to be introduced for the first time in Pakistan. Industry sources said that prices for several such drugs have already been determined by DRAP and the pricing committee headed by Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb.
However, the federal cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, is yet to give its final approval, and formally notify the drug pricing. The delay has effectively stalled the introduction of these medicines into the local market.
Tauqeer Ul Haq said the issue pertains solely to the price determination of advanced new medicines rather than an increase in existing drug prices.
“The government might be mixing the issue of price determination for new drugs with a broader issue of price-hike for the drugs already available in the market – that is not the case.” He further noted that the introduction of these medicines is essential for modern treatment in the country, adding that patients are enduring severe hardships due to the unavailability of these therapies.
Experts have also warned that continued delays in official notifications could lead to the influx of unregulated or smuggled medicines into the market, posing significant health risks to patients.
The situation highlights an urgent need for regulatory clarity and timely decision-making to ensure access to essential and potentially life-saving treatments in Pakistan.
A former industry official and a pharmaceutical sector expert, Jibran Khan said DRAP has sent the new drug pricing summary to the federal cabinet three to four times over the past six to eight months.
However, “the cabinet has not considered the issue in its recent meetings due to the government engagement in deescalating US-Israel and Iran conflict in the region”.
He maintained that some of the new and advanced medicines awaiting government pricing notification are essential and the approval would benefit patients.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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