Patients in Pakistan have been having difficulty obtaining essential medications as a result of the ongoing economic crisis. Pakistan’s ability to import the medicines or Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (API) needed for domestic production has been hindered by the country’s lack of forex reserves.
As a result, local pharmaceutical manufacturers have been compelled to reduce production while hospitalized patients suffer. Due to a lack of medications and medical supplies, doctors are compelled not to perform surgeries.
According to reports in Pakistani media, the stock of anesthetics required for delicate surgeries like heart, cancer, and kidney transplants is less than two weeks’ worth. The situation could also lead to job losses in Pakistani hospitals, escalating the suffering of the populace.
By asserting that commercial banks are not issuing new Letters of Credit (LCs) for their imports, the pharmaceutical companies have laid the blame for the crisis in the healthcare system squarely on the financial system.
The manufacturing of medicines in Pakistan heavily relies on imports, with almost 95% of the drugs requiring raw materials from India and China. Due to a lack of dollars in the banking system, the majority of drug manufacturers’ imported materials have been held up at the Karachi port.
According to the pharmaceutical industry, the sharp devaluation of the Pakistani rupee and rising fuel and transportation costs are to blame for the ongoing rise in drug manufacturing costs.
The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) recently asked the government to step in to stop the situation from getting worse. However, rather than acting immediately, the authorities are still attempting to determine the extent of the shortage.
According to drug retailers in Pakistan’s Punjab, government survey teams conducted field visits to ascertain the critical medicine shortage. The retailers revealed that a lack of some essential but common medications impacts the majority of customers. Panadol, Insulin, Brufen, Disprin, Calpol, Tegral, Nimesulide, Hepamerz, Buscopan, and Rivotril, among others, are among these medications.
According to The Express Tribune, Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association (PPMA) Central Chairman Syed Farooq Bukhari stated earlier in January that between 20 and 25 percent of pharmaceutical products are currently slow.
Without a staff-level agreement, the Pakistani government and IMF staff completed the ninth review of the USD 6.5 billion bailout package earlier this month. The Pakistani government had hoped that they would be able to persuade the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to gradually implement the conditions. Nevertheless, during the IMF mission’s 10-day stay in Pakistan, Islamabad’s hopes were dashed.
According to Pak vernacular media Daily Express, Pakistan is experiencing a shortage of insulin for diabetics, and the medical market in Karachi is getting worse. Pak vernacular media Daily Express reported that Pakistan is experiencing a lack of insulin for diabetics.
In addition, there is still a problem with imported medicines, which is causing a shortage of other life-saving medications.
There is a shortage of medicine on the market when pharmaceutical companies are forced to raise the price of a drug, which results in either a reduction in supply or the complete cessation of manufacturing.
