The Islamabad Women’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IWCCI) on Tuesday asked the government to reconsider its decision to allow 100 percent increase in the price of imported hepatitis vaccine which is already out of the reach of poor people.
With around 10 percent population infected, hepatitis was the number one killer disease in Pakistan which mostly infected the poor and middle-class people, said IWCCI President Farida Rashid. Speaking to the business community, she said that majority of the patients could not afford costly vaccines and the government should promote indigenous production to reduce healthcare costs. Farida also said that the government in a historic decision reduced the prices of 92 pharma products on July 13, 2012 in which the price of imported hepatitis vaccine was brought down to Rs 6,500 from the previous cost of Rs 13,000. She further said that the price of vaccine was brought down on papers only as the multinational companies kept the prices intact using their influence and connections, adding this phenomenon was prevalent in developing countries.