In a major turnaround for Pakistan’s healthcare system, almost all medicines are now available in the local market, following the government’s decision to deregulate prices of non-essential drugs. The move has reversed years of chronic shortages, disrupted black-market profiteering, and restored access to life-saving treatments.
Why Medicines Were Missing
Pharmaceutical manufacturers had long warned that government-fixed prices were far below production costs, especially amid inflation, currency devaluation, and rising global raw material prices. Common drugs like Panadol, insulin, and tuberculosis treatments had vanished from shelves, forcing patients to turn to smuggled or counterfeit alternatives.
How Deregulation Helped
The 2023 policy shift allowed companies to adjust prices for non-essential medicines. For example:
- A tablet previously priced at Rs.3 could not be produced profitably
- Deregulation enabled a new price of Rs.6, bringing it back to market
This change has:
- Revived production across the pharma sector
- Reduced counterfeit circulation by eliminating shortages
- Improved access to psychiatric, cancer, and anti-epileptic drugs
Price Trends and Consumer Impact
According to a joint survey by PPMA, Pharma Bureau, and IQVIA:
- Prices for the top 100 brands rose by an average of 16.5%
- Much of this increase stemmed from hardship adjustments and new product launches, not deregulation alone.
- Urban medicine prices rose by 13.05%, and rural prices by 15.3%, still lower than inflation in other sectors.
Dual Pricing System
The policy applies only to non-essential medicines. Over 460 essential drugs remain under strict government price control to ensure affordability for critical treatments.
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