The Punjab government today took people friendly initiative to provide medicines on subsidized rates to the patients suffering from Hepatitis B&C in Punjab.Disclosing this here today, Health and Family Welfare Minister Punjab Surjit Kumar Jayani said that the Punjab government was the first state to check the exorbitant prices of the essential drugs prescribed to the patients by giving much needed relief to the patients by making available such medicines on subsidized rates. He reiterated that the Punjab government was determined to provide best health care facilities to the general public and has taken various initiatives like providing free essential drugs, free deliveries including medicines and consumables to the patients visiting government health facilities and providing Cancer Treatment Drugs at subsidized rates to the patients through empanelled hospitals as well as Jan Aushadhi Stores (JAS).
Especially mentioning the Punjab government’s decision to provide medicines on subsidized rates for Hepatitis B & C patients, Mr. Jayani said that the Punjab Health department has recently finalized the Rate Contract for Tab. Entecavir 0.5 mg with M/s Ranbaxy Laboratories Pvt. Ltd. and Injection Peg interferon α 2b with M/s Fulford India Pvt. Ltd. These medicines are used for treatment of Hepatitis B & C respectively. The Minister also said that with the finalization of the Rate Contract for treatment of Hepatitis B & C, it is expected that out of pocket expenditure for the patients suffering from Hepatitis B&C would be reduced substantially and their exploitation at the hands of Chemists/Suppliers who were supplying these medicines at exorbitant rates will be reduced to a great extent.
Adding further, the minister said that these medicines would be provided at subsidized rates to the patients through Jan Aushadhi Stores. The Jan Aushadhi stores would charge nominal handling charges @ 6% on the rates approved in the Rate Contract for providing these drugs to the patients. The particulars of drugs were finalized under expert guidance from department of Hepatolgy, PGIMER, Chandigarh.