Deputy Health Minister Dr. Hansaka Wijemuni says the inability to regulate medicine prices in Sri Lanka stems from an injunction issued by the court against the National Medicines Regulatory Authority’s (NMRA) pricing committee.
He revealed this during a short interview with The Life Traveller YouTube channel, responding to a question regarding the public’s concern over the delay in reducing medicine prices.
When asked why the government continues to delay in providing relief to the public through reduced medicine prices, the Minister acknowledged the concern and explained that a legal barrier was the main reason.
According to the Minister, pharmaceutical companies had filed a petition challenging the NMRA’s price control mechanism, following which the court issued an injunction halting the operations of the price control committee.
However, he noted that steps have now been taken to resolve the issue, which has remained unresolved for about a year and a half.
He added that based on a decision taken nearly two months ago, a new pricing mechanism has now been finalized. Therefore, the arguments made by the pharmaceutical companies are no longer valid, he said.
The government is now preparing to file a motion in court requesting the removal of the existing injunction, presenting the newly developed framework. (NewsWire)
The post Govt fights to regulate Medicine costs appeared first on Islandnews.
