The controversial National Pharmaceutical Policy 2006 may finally see the light of the day with the Health Ministry and Chemicals and Fertilisers Ministry sorting out differences over some proposals in the policy. "The secretaries of Ministry of Health and Ministry of Chemical and Fertilisers, held a meeting a couple of weeks back in which concerns of Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss were discussed and ironed out," a senior government official told a news agency.
With the issues sorted out, the Chemicals and Fertilisers Ministry would be approaching the Group of Ministers (GoM), which was formed to look into the policy again, the official said while adding that it would then be up to the GoM to decide on the future course of action.
The draft pharma policy was referred to the GoM headed by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, after concerns were raised by the pharmaceutical industry over the issue of price control as proposed in the draft. Till now, four meetings of the GoM have taken place but it has not been able to find a solution.
In the fourth meeting held on 30th April, Health Ministry has objected to the some of the proposals made in the draft after which it was decided that secretaries from both ministries should sit and overcome hurdles for smooth passage of the policy. The Health Ministry had apparently objected to the provisions in the pharma policy pertaining to drug regulator and procurement of medicines for government hospitals and health insurance, which it felt would be duplicated.
