Govt directs DRAP to review drug-pricing formula, expedite pending cases

Federal ministers have asked the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) to reassess its medicine-pricing framework and move forward with pending price cases, Profit by Pakistan Today reported on October 27. Officials said individual reviews of outstanding cases are close to completion, while the authority is also checking whether parts of the current formula obstruct fair price-setting.

Senator Ahad Cheema said price rises must have sound grounds and called for a public-focused approach that does not add needless barriers for medicine importers or pharmaceutical businesses. He also suggested that DRAP use specialist drug-price databases and international comparisons, supported by independent checks. The meeting was told that adequate stocks of the WHO-recommended trivalent flu vaccine are available, and DRAP has withdrawn its hardship case because international market prices for the vaccine are controlled.