In Pakistan, the prices of medicines and medical equipment have once again increased abruptly, causing concern for patients.
The cost of the important drugs eye drops, hearing aids, antibiotics, heart disease medications, high blood pressure drugs and TB medicines has increased by PKR50 to 500.
During a recent market review revealed that several types of eye drops are now unavailable and these drops are openly selling in the black market.
Likewise, some surgical medicines have vanished from the market and replacements of these medicines have become more expensive for patients.
Currently, over 100 vital medicines are largely unreachable that created difficulties for dozens of patients.
Continuous price hikes in medicines and medical equipment are increasingly burdensome, particularly for lower- and middle-income patients, who are facing severe financial pressure.
Prices of surgical instruments, blood sugar testing devices, and other medical tools have also risen, making even basic treatment unaffordable for many.
Health experts and organisations are urging the government to immediately stop the price surge and ensure the availability of important medicines so that ordinary citizens are not deprived of fundamental healthcare services.
Pakistan’s weekly inflation edges up as food prices surge
Pakistan’s weekly inflation rose slightly last month, increasing by 0.24 percent compared to the previous week, while showing a 3.75 percent rise compared to the same period last year, the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics (PBS) reported.
According to the weekly SPI report, out of 51 essential items tracked, prices of 17 items went up, 14 items fell, and 20 remained stable.
Chicken saw the sharpest weekly increase at 11.11 percent, followed by chilli powder (3.08%), eggs (2.88%), and shirting fabric (1.64%). Other items registering modest rises included firewood, cooking oil, mustard oil, energy saver bulbs, pulse moong, and beef.
Also read: Flour prices go up due to supply crises
