Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gillani has directed the cabinet secretary to ensure uninterrupted provision of medicines to the patients all over the country and resolution of all outstanding issues of the pharmaceutical industry. According to a press statement issued by the National Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Network (NHEPRN) on Thursday, the cabinet secretary accordingly took appropriate measures to resolve outstanding problems and the 231st meeting of Drug Registration Board was held earlier in the month with the Drugs Controller Registration in the chair.
“The Drug Registration Board considered 2,500 pending applications. The board approved 30 medical devices and about 210 single and multiple ingredient drugs in various presentations like tablets, capsules, injections, syrups of different potencies. Products approved for registration include pharmaceuticals, biologicals, anti cancer and drugs for thalassaemia treatment.” It said the medical devices, including stents used in cardiac procedures were also registered. Registrations have also been granted for certain medical devices, vaccines, sera and biological products which are either not produced in the country or their production is not adequate to meet the requirements. The products were approved for 30 newly-licensed units, while 42 pharmaceutical units established 104 new sections for various dosage forms and 72 manufacturers made substantial improvements in their already existing facilities. Total investment in these activities is estimated to be Rs 1.5 to 2.5 billions. The Drug Registration Board approved 164 products for de-registration. The resumption of Disprol tablets production which was suspended since May 10, 2011, was not approved. The board also directed the manufacturer to destroy the substandard stocks of 32.6 million tablets which had been recalled.
