Pakistan’s worsening financial health and depreciating local currency has led to an acute shortage of imported and life-saving medicines in the debt-ridden country.
Pakistan, currently in the throes of a major economic crisis, is grappling with high external debt and dwindling foreign exchange reserves. Public and private healthcare facilities are facing an acute shortage of imported vaccines, cancer therapies, fertility drugs and anaesthesia gasses after vendors stopped their supplies due to dollar-rupee disparity, according to media reports.
Although most oral medicines, including syrups, tablets and injections are produced locally, Pakistan imports a majority of biological products like vaccines, anti-cancer medicines and therapies from India, China, Russia, European countries as well as the United States and Turkey.
The pharmaceutical firms have blamed the financial and commercial system for the crisis in the healthcare system, alleging that the State Bank of Pakistan has not been issuing new Letters of Credit (LCs) for imports.
Hospitals and medical stores in the country are said to be running out of life-saving drugs, like insulin and paracetamol. Medicines for hypertension and heart disease are also in short supply in local markets.
Pakistan is currently scrambling to boost its dwindling forex reserves, which are estimated to be at $4.8 billion after China refinanced $500 million last week.
Cash-strapped Pakistan is awaiting a much-needed $1.1 billion tranche of funding from the Washington-based global money lender, which was originally due to be disbursed in November last year.
The funds are part of a $6.5 billion bailout package the IMF approved in 2019, which analysts say is critical if Pakistan is to avoid defaulting on external debt obligations.
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