Pharmaceutical Companies threaten to shut down amidst medicine shortage

Pharmaceutical companies have threatened to stage a protest this week in order to pressurize the federal government into addressing the challenges facing the sector. Pharmaceutical Companies threaten to shut down amidst medicine shortage.

According to details, pharmaceutical firms will protest from 5 January as they believe that the wrong policies of the federal government created an acute shortage of life-saving medicines.

Diabetes patients are finding it hard to buy insulin from the market while medicines for kidney and cardiac ailments are also unavailable in pharmacies, causing serious difficulties for the patients.

Speaking in this regard, President Pakistan Drug Lawyer Forum (PDLF), Noor Meher, said that shipments of medicines are awaiting clearance from the authorities at Karachi Port, Lahore Dry Port, and other ports in the country.

He added that Pakistan imports more than 91% of raw materials used in the manufacturing of medicines. In order to get the raw materials cleared, the employees of pharmaceutical companies will stage a protest.

President PDLF said that pharmaceutical companies will observe a complete shut down from 5 January and their employees will protest against the policies of the federal government. Pharmaceutical Companies threaten to shut down amidst medicine shortage.
Pakistan may face shortage of medicines and medical devices in the months ahead as local banks are not opening Letters of Credit (LCs) for the import of medicines’ raw material and medical devices due to dollar liquidity crunch, pharmaceutical manufacturers warned on Wednesday.
“The State Bank Pakistan (SBP) has verbally conveyed to all local banks not to open LCs for the import of Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) due to shortage of dollars in the country. We have the money to buy medicines’ raw material from abroad but dollars liquidity crunch in the country may result in shortage of medicines in Pakistan in the weeks and months ahead,” Arshad Mahmood, Chairman of Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association (PPMA), North Region, told newsmen after attending the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Health meeting.
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