Regulatory Delays Spark Critical Medicine Shortage Across Pakistan
Loading more articles...
Pakistan's healthcare in crisis: Policy delays cause severe medicine shortages, patients suffer.
N
News18•12-03-2026, 15:00
Pakistan's healthcare in crisis: Policy delays cause severe medicine shortages, patients suffer.
•Pakistan is experiencing a severe shortage of essential medicines, including advanced cancer drugs, vaccines, and other life-saving therapies, affecting patients nationwide.
•The scarcity is attributed primarily to policy delays within Pakistan’s regulatory system, not global supply chain disruptions or regional instability.
•A key issue is the government's failure to officially notify prices for newly approved medicines, making pharmaceutical companies reluctant to import them due to regulatory risks.
•The shortage impacts critical treatments for leukaemia, typhoid, polio, rabies, haemophilia, and malaria, depriving patients of standard medical care.
•Experts warn that these delays encourage the spread of smuggled, counterfeit, or unregulated medicines, posing serious risks to patient lives and exposing governance weaknesses.
