A patient's relative holds a prescription written by a doctor, running from one pharmacy to another, but the required medicine is nowhere to be found. Finally, the seller offers an alternative—priced several times higher than the original. Left with no choice, the relative buys the expensive medicine, emptying their pocket. This has now become a cruel daily reality for countless average and low-income families across the country. Citing rising production costs and a prolonged lack of price adjustments, pharmaceutical companies in the country have suspended the production of nearly 60 percent of the 117 listed essential medicines. As a result, these affordable life-saving drugs have vanished from the market.

Impact of a 32-Year-Old Pricing Structure and Ground Realities

On Monday (August 24), at an exchange-of-views meeting titled "Progress of the Pharmaceutical Industry: Challenges and Prospects" organized at the office of the Bangladesh Association of Pharmaceutical Industries (BAPI) in Tejgaon, industry representatives highlighted the commercial and administrative complexities behind this crisis.

According to them, essential medicine prices are currently regulated based on a 1994 pricing structure. Over the past 32 years, overall market inflation has surged manifold, along with increases in the exchange rate of the US dollar, workers' wages, and electricity and fuel prices. However, the government has adjusted the prices of these products only twice during this long period, despite a policy provision allowing an average annual adjustment of 8 percent. Consequently, the selling price of these medicines has fallen below their production cost, disincentivizing manufacturers from producing them.

"Currently, the production cost of many of these essential medicines can no longer be recovered from their selling price. Due to the lack of proper price adjustments, we have been forced to stop the production of nearly 60 percent of these drugs." — Mosaddek Hossain, Vice President, BAPI

Production Lines Stalled by Electricity and Fuel Crises

Beyond the pricing structure, the industry faces a new threat from severe and continuous electricity and gas shortages. The manufacturing process in the pharmaceutical sector is extremely sensitive—once a batch begins, it cannot be interrupted halfway. A sudden power outage ruins the entire batch of raw materials, resulting in losses worth millions.

BAPI General Secretary Muhammad Halimuzzaman noted that factories are forced to rely constantly on large UPS units and diesel generators. Due to the gas crisis, they must also purchase additional diesel from the open market to run the generators, driving up overall production costs exponentially.

The Humanitarian Question: Is the Burden of Profit Solely on Patients? While the arguments of pharmaceutical owners are understandable from a business standpoint, a question arises from the public's perspective: How humane is it to halt the production of life-saving medicines solely over a failure to make a profit? Because low-cost essential medicines have disappeared from the market, ordinary patients are forced to purchase equivalent but highly expensive branded alternatives. This has led to an uncontrolled rise in healthcare expenses, impoverishing many families trying to cover treatment costs. "Providing essential medicines at affordable prices is the constitutional responsibility of the government. The government can supply these medicines at low prices through subsidies or public procurement systems. However, expecting private entrepreneurs to bear continuous losses without any support is not realistic."

— Dr. Zakir Hossain, Former General Secretary (BAPI) & Managing Director, Delta Pharma

State-Owned EDCL and Alternative Solutions The discussion also highlighted the role of the state-owned Essential Drugs Company Limited (EDCL). According to experts, private companies cannot be compared to EDCL, as EDCL benefits from guaranteed government purchase orders and does not incur marketing costs. If the government wishes, it can multiply EDCL's production capacity to deliver these essential medicines to the public's doorstep at low or no cost through public hospitals. Urgent Steps to Overcome the Crisis: • Forming an Expert Panel: Regularly update the essential medicines list based on inputs from health and market experts. • Transparent Pricing Policy: Establish an automated, transparent, and timely price-fixing and regular adjustment process. • Energy Security: Ensure uninterrupted gas and electricity supply to pharmaceutical manufacturing plants. • Government Subsidies and Enhancing EDCL Capacity: Provide special subsidies for producing emergency drugs for marginalized populations, or boost production through EDCL to distribute affordable medicines under government management.

Medicine is not just a consumer commodity; it is the bridge between life and death. To ensure that human lives are not endangered by commercial and policy conflicts, the government, pharmaceutical owners, and experts must collaborate immediately to find an effective solution.

Author: Dr. Abul Hasnat Milton, Journalist, Political Analyst, and Editor-in-Chief, The Source News Bangla