Islamabad: Pakistan’s Drug Regulatory Authority (DRAP) is planning to conduct a study to examine the possibility of changing prescribing practices — compelling doctors to write medicines by their generic names instead of brands — in a bid to break the entrenched nexus between pharmaceutical companies and physicians.
The announcement came on Monday during a meeting of the Senate Standing Committee on Health, where lawmakers blasted what they described as profiteering through undue prescriptions, unnecessary cesarean sections and costly diagnostic tests.
Appearing before the committee, DRAP Chief Executive Officer Dr. Obaidullah said the regulator would soon initiate a study on generic prescriptions once its ongoing report on the impact of medicine price deregulation is completed.
“We will have to listen to all stakeholders, including pharmaceutical companies operating in the country,” he told lawmakers, but admitted that the influence of industry incentives on doctors had become a serious concern.
The meeting quickly turned into an indictment of Pakistan’s healthcare system. Senators alleged that doctors prescribe drugs and procedures not on medical grounds but for commissions, foreign trips and five-star hospitality arranged by pharmaceutical firms. They also voiced alarm over the soaring number of cesarean deliveries being performed without justification.
Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal defended recent price hikes, arguing that pharmaceuticals were “business ventures working for profit.” “When the prices of everything else are increasing, why can’t the prices of medicines rise?” he asked, pointing out that multinationals were already exiting Pakistan due to a lack of ease of doing business. He said recent decisions included fixing prices for 35 new essential medicines and approving hardship-based increases for 58 others.
Mustafa Kamal added that the government had abolished the law under which CEOs of pharmaceutical firms could be prosecuted for substandard medicines, insisting this was to encourage investment. At the same time, he highlighted reforms in DRAP, including digitization of medical device registration that had enabled 180 cases to be processed within weeks, some in as little as 20 days.
But senators pushed back strongly. Senator Sarmad Ali alleged that DRAP’s reputation was so tainted that it is perceived that “officials retire as billionaires.” The minister admitted he too was greeted with “congratulations” for joining what many called the most corrupt ministry but maintained that transparency was being ensured in DRAP, PMDC and the Nursing Council.
Senator Danesh Kumar accused gynecologists of turning “every pregnancy into a C-section” and warned of exploitation of women in addition to foreign trips by the doctors, undue prescription of medicines and diagnostic tests and procedures in exchange of monetary benefits from the pharmaceutical companies.
In response, Chairman Senator Amir Waliuddin Chishti formed a sub-committee led by Senator Fawzia Arshad to investigate unnecessary C-sections and directed the health ministry to collect data from hospitals nationwide. Senator Sarmad Ali further called for a blanket ban on foreign trips for doctors funded by pharmaceutical companies.
Senator Dr. Zarqa Suharwardy Taimur said medicine affordability had collapsed after floods, with counterfeit and overpriced drugs proliferating in the market. The committee directed the ministry to prepare a detailed report on medicine pricing for its next session.
Other issues were also discussed, including the MDCAT exam for flood-hit students, rising dengue cases in Islamabad, and the health challenges of displaced communities in Qambar. Senators also criticized the closure of the PMDC portal, which they said had ensured transparency and convenience for students.
By the end of the session, senators warned that as long as doctors continue prescribing by brand names, patients will remain hostage to a system built on conflicts of interest. They urged DRAP to push through reforms on generic prescribing to restore trust and affordability in healthcare.
Ends