Companies that do not comply with proper standards will be blacklisted and this will apply to all sectors and if such companies are in this country, they will also be blacklisted, Health and Industry Minister Dr. Ramesh Pathirana said.
He said that billions are spent annually for that and pharmaceutical companies should provide quality medicines to the people.
The Minister emphasized this yesterday (14) at the Ministry at a special discussion held with the officers of the Medical Supply Division, the State Pharmaceutical Corporation, the State Pharmaceutical Products Regulatory Corporation, and the National Drug Regulatory Authority, which are under the Health Ministry regarding matters related to the regulation, supply, and distribution of drugs.
The Minister gave instructions that the price of the medicines be decided through a pricing committee.He said they want to prepare a system where the Government will provide high quality medicines to the people of this country.
He pointed out that more than 500 million dollars is spent annually for this purpose and the best solution is to produce the required medicines in the country. Minister Pathirana instructed officials to work on bringing the necessary medicines to the country using the right methods and to pay more attention to equipment such as contact lenses, stents and syringes.
The Director General of Health Services, the Deputy Director General of the Medical Supply Division, the Chairman of the State Pharmaceutical Corporation and the Chairman of the State Drug Regulatory Authority will negotiate with the relevant parties and speed up the process according to the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of India and the Government of Sri Lanka.
Health State Minister Dr. Seetha Arambepola, Health Secretary Janaka Chandragupta, Additional Secretary (Procurement) Y.L.M. Navavi, Director General of Health Services Dr. Asela Gunawardena, National Drug Regulatory Authority Chairman Dr. Ananda Wijewickrama, State Pharmaceutical Corporation Chairman Dr. Ajith Mendis, Deputy Director General of Medical Supply Division D.R.K.Herat, Dr. Kapila Wickramanayake, the director of that department and others participated.
Ishara Mudugamuwa