Bengaluru: As Karnataka govt considers tightening the drug supply chain by enabling direct procurement between manufacturers and hospitals, pharmacists in the city have opposed the move, arguing that the existing network of carrying and forwarding (C&F) agents, stockists and distributors is essential for ensuring systematic drug supply.Following the recent Bidadi spurious drug scam, health minister UT Khader said the health department was considering tightening the supply chain along the lines of Uttar Pradesh’s new institutional procurement rules. The rationale is to reduce the number of intermediaries between manufacturers and end users, making the supply chain easier to track and accountability easier to establish.However, pharmacists said direct procurement could make it more difficult to track the movement of drugs, while also leading to pricing disparities and unhealthy competition in the market.“Tightening the supply chain itself can result in more scams. The chain is now well-established: manufacturer to stockist, then C&F agents, distributors and finally hospitals or retailers. Since manufacturers are spread across India, it might be easier for spurious drugs to enter the chain if these checks are not there in between. Our drug control department, for instance, will not have jurisdiction in Himachal Pradesh to ensure that fake drugs do not get into the system. This is why C&F agents are necessary. The Food Safety and Drug Administration (FDA) should instead focus on the leak that is occurring between C&F agents and distributors,” said MK Mayanna, president, Bruhat Bengaluru Chemists and Druggists’ Association.He added that direct procurement could also make monitoring more difficult for regulators. “FDA might not have any control if there is direct procurement as officials cannot check hospitals every day,” he said.Pharmacists also pointed out that the existing supply chain supports a large number of jobs, which could be affected if its links are suddenly removed.“There are lakhs of pharmacies and lakhs of people dependent on the supply chain. Disruption of this chain, while bringing more chaos into the system, will also affect the families of C&F agents and distributors. We’re confident the health minister and the department will not make a sudden decision without consulting us, the stakeholders,” said C Jayaram, president, Karnataka Pharma Retailers & Distributors’ Organisation (KPRDO).Instead of removing intermediaries, pharmacists suggested making the existing system more transparent through online tracking and stronger regulatory checks. “Whichever manufacturer comes to our state, big or small, should be mandated to upload details of their products, authorised stockists, C&F agents and distributors. They should also compulsorily give three units from every batch to FDA for sample testing. This should also apply to nutraceuticals and cosmetics as all of these are covered under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act,” said Ravindra Kumar M J, general secretary, Karnataka Chemists and Distributors Association.He also urged FDA to closely monitor establishments offering steep discounts and strengthen checks on the disposal of expired drugs by retailers and wholesalers to prevent expired medicines from being recycled and re-entering the market.
