Govt to set up pharmacies in public hospitals for affordable medicines

The interim government is planning to open pharmacies in public hospitals and clinics across the country for the first time as part of an effort to make healthcare more accessible and bring it closer to the people.

Dr. Sayedur Rahman, Special Assistant to the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, announced on Tuesday (April 8) that the initiative will begin with medical college hospitals and later expand to upazila-level hospitals. The government expects the new pharmacies to offer 250 life-saving medicines, covering treatments for 85% of patients.

According to ministry sources, millions of people across the country suffer from long-term illnesses such as diabetes and high blood pressure. The latest survey by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics shows that 64% of a patient's average medical expenses are spent on purchasing medicines. As a result, many patients become impoverished each year just to afford medications. Considering this, the health department has decided to sell medicines at one-third of the usual price.

Currently, only public and specialized hospitals have medicine stores for outpatient departments, but no pharmacies are available.

Dr. Sayedur Rahman said, "Currently, government hospitals offer lab services and primary healthcare services, but no pharmaceutical services are available. This new arrangement will be introduced in government hospitals gradually."

"The health sector budget will be increased, more medicines will be purchased as needed, and the government's pharmaceutical production capacity will be enhanced," he added.

The health department also said that the government pharmaceutical company, EDLCL, purchases medicines worth 1,300 crore taka annually, with ongoing efforts to expand its capacity. A key challenge for the new pharmacies will be preventing theft of medicines, prompting the government to work on digitizing the entire system.