By: Sawan Khaskheli
BADIN: Up to 300 percent increase in prices of life-saving drugs within short span of time has compelled a major segment of patients to reduce drug dosage or discontinue proper and prescribed medication due to expensive treatment.The increasing day by day poverty, unemployment, inflation and uncertain economic impact on low paid individuals.The unregulated prices of drugs was claimed by some leading pharmaceutical manufacturers that such increase would ensure availability of medicines in the market but they do not care about hardships poor were sustaining.In this connection some four months earlier, the federal cabinet took the decision to allow upto 260 percent rise in prices of 94 life-saving drugs and was claimed that such move would address the longstanding issue of shortage of medicines and was made on the recommendations of Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan under the hardship category and as per the Drugs Pricing Policy 2018.The drugs prices including Neurobion, Adrenaline injections,Norethistirone, Furosemide injections, Acetazolamide,Carbamezipine, Atropine sulphate injections, Nitroglycerin and others were increased beyond the reach of poor masses causing lack of health facilities.The hike in drug prices has disrupted adequate treatment for poor to deal with.