Remedy post-GST medicine shortages, government tells pharma companies

NEW DELHI: India’s central drug regulator has told drug makers and state regulators to ensure that essential medicines are available to patients across the country, following reported incidents of shortages in drugs following the Goods and Services Tax implementation.

The country has reportedly witnessed a shortage in essential medicines to treat diabetes and other life-threatening disease after July 1.

“…it has been alleged that due to financial loss because of implementation of GST, the drug companies are not releasing their product into the market although stock of hundreds of crores are kept in godowns,” stated Drugs Controller General of India GN Singh in a notice.

He added that the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), the country’s apex drug regulator, has allowed companies to re-label old stocks of their medicines with post-GST Maximum Retail Prices (MRP). This has been done to facilitate manufacturers for switching over to the new GST regime smoothly and to ensure that medicines are available to patients “without any regulatory hurdles,” he said.