Aamir Khan clears his stance at the House panel

Aamir Khan who was recently invited by the Parliamentary committee for the discussions on increasing malpractices in medical field seems to have cleared his stance about what he thought about the issues. Aamir Khan, through his popular show, 'Satyamev Jayate' had clearly stated the issues in medical profession. He had mentioned the malpractices and the rate at which the prices of medicines are getting increased through each year. 

The 47-year old was invited to discuss the issues of FDI in pharmaceutical sector, Aamir was added in as a witness to the issues faced by the sector, by the parliamentary committee for commerce.

The generic medicines that were available through the country have now stopped gradually as the multi-national companies are taking over the industry and this take over has raised the fears that it will ultimately result in price hike of essential drugs.

The Union health ministry's internal assessment suggests the recent buy-offs will reduce domestic availability of many essential medicines that were earlier manufactured and sold by the acquired firms. The foreign MNCs had also raised their share of the domestic market from 15% to 25% five years ago. 

Aamir did submit a report on FDI on the sector and supported his thought on generic medicines. But there were said to be concerns about the quality and effect of the medicines provided under generic medicines banner. Towards which the actor says "The regulatory body checks every drug before it is sold. Be it patented or non-patented, branded or unbranded," he said. "The main motive of big companies is to earn more. We understand that.

"The issue here is how the poor get cheap medicine. The companies will benefit if they sell cheap drugs. Bulk sales will lower the profit margins but profit will remain. It is win-win situation for all," he said. 

Aamir also added that more states should follow the path of Rajasthan and Tamilnadu which gives out free medicines to poor people and also purchases them at lower rates thus not causing any additional debts.

Panel chief Shanta Kumar told TOI, "We are planning to submit our recommendations on FDI in pharma sector in the next parliamentary session. India was once seen as the pharmacy of the world till MNCs started taking over our generic drug companies that would increase their prices. Our meeting with Aamir Khan lasted for two and a half hours." 

Current Implementations towards health care.

It is also said that the prime ministers office has also advised the health ministry to provide free medication to rural sectors under National Rural Health Mission.

Purchasing drugs alone accounts for 72% of the out-of-pocket (OOP) expenditure. The sharp increase in prices of drugs has been the main reason for the rising costs of healthcare, which more than tripled between 1993-94 and 2006-07. 

India reported about 40% spurt in all drug prices between 1996 and 2006. The Planning Commission estimates that nearly 39 million Indians are pushed to poverty because of ill health every year. 

India's stand in the world healthcare charts.

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently found that generic medicines were available only in 20%-40% of public health clinics surveyed. Experts say that low public sector availability forces patients to purchase medicines from the private sector, where prices are generally higher and are not always affordable.

Experts say India has the highest number of US-FDA approved plants outside the US. Most of these plants have multiple approvals from regulatory authorities in Canada, Australia and Germany. India also holds a strong position in producing generic drugs through reverse engineering. They also have a strong distribution network not only at home but in other middle-income countries that are an area of major interest for MNCs. 

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- Unknown Updated at: Friday, June 22, 2012