Bar pharmas from raising medicine prices at will
The High Court yesterday ordered the authorities concerned to take effective measures to prevent the pharmaceutical companies from hiking the prices of all types of medicines arbitrarily.
The officials concerned, including the director general of the Directorate General of Drug Administration, have been asked to implement the order.
In response to a writ petition, the court also directed the government to prevent the pharmaceutical companies from importing raw materials, and manufacturing and selling foreign drugswithout the approval of the health ministry.
The court issued a rule asking the authorities concerned to explain why their inaction on fixing prices of all drugs under section 30 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Act-2023 should not be declared illegal.
The bench of Justice Mustafa Zaman Islam and Justice Md Atabullah issued the order and rule following a writ petition seeking necessary directives.
Barrister Jyortimoy Barua appeared for the writ petitioner while Deputy Attorney General Tushar Kanti Roy and assistant attorney generals Md Salim Azad and Anich ul Mawa represented the state during the hearing of the petition.
Consumers Association of Bangladesh (CAB) filed the petition as a public interest litigation with the HC attaching a newspaper report that said drugs prices increased by seven to 140 percent in two months.
According to the report, different companies increased the prices of their drugs at their willin two months. Prices of at least 50 types of medicines have been hiked from 20 to 140 percent. Prices of several medicines were increased in the first week of March.
Prices of antibiotic tablets, insulin and injections, used for treating diabetic patients, have been increased the most. The prices of many other medicines and vitamins, including those used for treatment of heart disease, high blood pressure, and asthma, have also gone up. Tablets and capsules used for treating fever and cold and syrups for various diseases have also become costlier.
A review of the increase in production costs and sales revenues of different companies shows that the prices of medicines have been hiked abnormally. Companies have blamed the devaluation of taka against US dollar and the rise in the prices of raw materials in the international market as the reason for the unusual price hike. At the same time, the prices of gas and electricity have also increased, leading to the increase in production cost, said top officials of pharmaceutical companies.
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