The Indian Pharmaceutical Sector : Issues and Options for Health Sector Reform
This report assesses the pharmaceutical sector in India, particularly focusing on four key issues related to the production, procurement, and distribution of drugs in India: a) availability, b) affordability; c) quality, and d) the rational use of...
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| Language: | English en_US |
| Published: |
Washington, DC: World Bank
2013
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2002/09/2018943/indian-pharmaceutical-sector-issues-options-health-sector-reform http://hdl.handle.net/10986/15231 |
| Summary: | This report assesses the pharmaceutical
sector in India, particularly focusing on four key issues
related to the production, procurement, and distribution of
drugs in India: a) availability, b) affordability; c)
quality, and d) the rational use of drugs. The results of a
survey of three states indicate considerable variation
across states in the above four areas in both public and
private sectors. The report concludes that problems with the
availability, affordability, and rational use of good
quality, cost-effective, essential drugs have persisted in
most parts of India, and that these health-related issues
need be addressed as a priority. An overarching
recommendation is the need to focus on strengthening the
implementation and regulation of the pharmaceutical sector
at the state level, rather than on simply introducing new
regulations. Adequate pharmaceutical quality assurance needs
to be particularly emphasized as, in its absence, other
reform measures could be rendered moot. Similarly, the
rational use of drugs needs to be emphasized as it is likely
to yield significant cost savings to the government and to
consumers, in addition to its positive impact on health. |
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