Reviving the debate on two Ministries 'with different wavelengths' controlling the drug sector in the country, the Parliamentary panel attached to the Commerce Ministry has now backed the idea of bringing Department of Pharmaceuticals (DoP) under the Health Ministry as suggested by the Planning Commission sometime back.

However, the debate is set to get gather momentum as the DoP and the Parliamentary panel attached to the Chemicals Ministry wanted to bring Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation also under the DoP, instead of moving the pharma department to the Health Ministry.

“During the examination of the subject, the Committee found no coordinated approach in the government space to address critical issues affecting public health especially in respect of drugs and medicines. While drug-making is being looked after by DoP, the drugs approval is under Department of Health and Family Welfare. Drug availability is to be ensured by DoP, while drugs requirement is to be monitored by Health Department. Similarly, essential medicines are to be identified by Department of Health and Family Welfare whereas  its pricing is to be looked after by the DoP,” the latest report by the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Commerce said.

“The Committee, on occasions, found the two Departments at different wavelengths on issues of public health. In this backdrop, the Committee is of the considered opinion that since medicines/ drugs are an integral aspect of public health structure, the DoP may be subsumed within Ministry of Health and Family Welfare for effective policy formulation and monitoring of pharma sector in larger public interest,” the panel recommended.

However, this stand is contrary to what the Parliamentary panel attached to the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers had taken earlier. It urged the Ministry to take up urgently the matter of bringing the CDSCO under the administrative purview of the DoP for better check on quality of drugs.

“The DoP may not be able to do full justice to its role regarding pricing and availability of drugs if the quality control set up does not come within its purview. The Committee, therefore, desire that the DoP should take up the matter regarding bringing the quality control and regulatory mechanism under one umbrella i.e. the DoP,” the panel suggested in a report some time back.

The debate has been going on for some time now over the issue. The DoP itself had taken up the matter with the Cabinet secretariat and the Prime Minister’s Office, clearly stating that the CDSCO may be brought under the DoP. Pushing the matter to the PMO, Lok Sabha member Dr Sujan Chakraborty had also written to the Prime Minister some time back with the same demand.

But the issue got a new twist when an expert group of the Planning Commission suggested that the DoP be transferred to the Health Ministry. The Commission's high-level expert group (HLEG) on universal health coverage, headed by Dr K Srinath Reddy, had stated in its report "public interest would be best served by transferring the department of pharmaceuticals to the health ministry".

The transfer would be appropriate since the ministry of health is responsible for ensuring quality, safety and efficacy of drugs and is accountable for unhindered availability of all essential drugs in the public healthcare system, it said, adding that such a move would help align drug production and pricing policies to prioritize national healthcare needs.