Karachi, Sindh’s Chief Minister Justice (R) Maqbool Baqir has taken a strong stance against the reported shortages of critical medications, including insulin, anti-rabies vaccines, and antihypertensive drugs, in the province. He has directed the health department to ensure the availability of these medicines in all government hospitals and to address any problems related to drug shortages or black marketing.
According to Chief Minister Sindh, the chief minister has been informed of severe shortages of insulin, ARV (Anti-Rabies Vaccine), and antihypertensive drugs in both government hospitals and the open market. Following these complaints, he demanded a detailed report on the stock of these medications available in hospitals and markets. The health department revealed that there are 2,955 units of insulin, 84,252 units of ARV, and 2,003,967 packets of antihypertensive medications available in government hospitals. However, the availability in the open market is reported to be 187,138 packets of antihypertensive drugs, 20,700 doses of ARV, and 23,486 vials of insulin.
The report also highlighted that two companies, M/s Getz Pharma and M/s Eli Lilly Pakistan, are the primary manufacturers of insulin in the region. M/s Getz Pharma has assured that it is producing a sufficient amount of insulin to meet market demand. In contrast, M/s Eli Lilly has faced difficulties in importing insulin due to a delay in receiving the import approval letter from DRAP (Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan) in Islamabad.
The chief minister has raised the issue with the relevant authorities, emphasizing the need for timely approval of the import process to prevent inconvenience to patients. Regarding the ARV, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in Islamabad, which is the sole producer of ARV in Pakistan, reported that its production capacity is insufficient to meet the peak demand from hospitals.
In response to these challenges, the Chief Minister has also communicated with the federal government to ensure the availability of ARVs in the market. He reminded that while drug registration, production, import, and pricing are managed by the federal government through DRAP, the sale and distribution of these drugs fall under provincial jurisdiction. Consequently, the Health Department has been instructed to deploy drug inspectors in the market to ensure the availability of medicines and to prevent any black marketing or manipulation.