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Sub-standard drugs and devices:
Ministry recovers Rs 160m
Rasika Somarathna
*Over 138 varieties fail to meet
quality requirement:
*Cost recovered from suppliers:
Health authorities have recovered Rs 160 million from pharmaceutical
and medical devices supplying firms as a rebate for 138 items that
failed quality requirements during the last four years.
The Medical Supply’s Division (MSD) in a report to the Health
Ministry Secretary has stated that they have recovered the cost from
suppliers with regards to all quality failure medicinal drugs and
devices, a Ministry spokesman said.
He said that the Health Ministry appointed expert committee on
medicinal drugs and devices had identified 138 varieties [2007 (07),
2008 (31), 2009 (48) and 2010 (52)] which failed to meet quality
requirements.
According to the Health Ministry spokesman, authorities obtain more
than 12,000 varieties of drugs and medical devices annually.
The figure is expected to go beyond 14,000 in 2011 and the
expenditure in this regard is expected to exceed Rs 10 billion. He noted
that under Health Minister Maithripala Sirisena’s instructions
authorities have taken stringent steps to ensure that the
Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices available to the public meet the
required standards of quality.
According to the spokesman every batch of medical supplies obtained
is subjected to a thorough quality check. In the case of even a single
tablet being found to be of sub-standard quality, the whole batch is
withdrawn. The expert committee takes into consideration issues such as
the date of expiry, levels of quality, possible damages and
irregularities in tender procedures etc. when rejecting drugs and
medical devices.
If a supplier fails to meet required standards on a continued basis
and are found to be operating in an irregular manner they are to be
temporarily suspended or blacklisted depending on the seriousness of the
issue. Health authorities have suspended five medical suppliers
temporarily for failing to meet required standards during the year. |
