Tug of war threatens supply of medicines.

KARACHI -- A tug of war between pharmaceutical manufacturers and the drug regulatory body is threatening to turn into a crisis after a decision by local companies to stop the production of several drugs has led to shortages of medicines in the market.

A list of around 40 different medicines, compiled by health professionals from leading public and private sector hospitals, seen by Dawn, indicates that several locally manufactured tablets, syrups, injections and ointments or drops are no longer available.

A senior pharmacist who was part of the team that compiled the list for the authorities in July told Dawn that these medicines include prescriptions for several conditions.

For example, all the brands of Lithium Carbonate - used to treat mental health issues and often referred to as 'suicide prevention drugs' - are not available in the market.

In addition, essential medicines, including methylphenidate for the treatment of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in children and clonazepam drops and tablets for epilepsy in children and adults, have not been available for the past several weeks.

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'It doesn't end here. Medicines for patients of tuberculosis, epilepsy, Parkinson's, cardiovascular disease and other conditions are also not available in the market... but I don't know why this situation has failed to create any buzz,' he said.

Health professionals have already started experiencing the impact of this crisis and are seeking immediate intervention from the authorities. The situation is so grim that some healthcare professionals Dawn spoke to said that the number of products on the list was increasing with each passing day.

The issue behind the shortage stems from producers who have been complaining about rising prices of raw material in the international market, resulting in an elevated production cost, which they insist can only be met through a 40 per cent increase in prices across the board.

'Right now, several medicines are not available in the local market because their cost of production has increased several fold and it has become infeasible for manufacturers to produce these drugs,' said Qazi Mansoor Dilawar of the Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers' Association (PPMA).

This demand, however, is facing resistance from the government, which sounded the alarm on the growing shortage of medicines last month when a task force was set up by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to look...