DRAP asked to curb counterfeit drugs

The country’s medicines watchdog has been asked to instruct all pharmaceutical companies and drug importers to print 2-D barcodes on the packages of their medicines within 14 days.

The policy board of the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) held a meeting on Wednesday to discuss measures to curb sale of fake medicines in the country.

Chaired by Ministry of National Health Services Secretary Iftikhar Shillwani, the meeting directed DRAP to write warning letters to the pharmaceutical and importers which are not printing barcodes on their product packaging.

The meeting also sought a report from the regulator with regard to implementation of the barcode rules. As per the rules, pharmaceutical companies and drug importers will have to print 2-D barcodes on their products.

The meeting observed that a 2-D barcode which helps in the identification of a medicine will help in curbing product and sale of counterfeit medicines.

A 2-D—two-dimensional—barcode is a graphical image that stores information horizontally as one-dimensional barcodes do, as well as vertically. As a result, the storage capacity for 2-D barcodes is much higher than 1-D barcodes.

A single 2-D barcode can store up to 7,089 characters instead of the 20-character capacity of a 1-D barcode. Quick response (QR) codes, which enable fast data access, are a type of 2-D barcode.

DRAP’s general direction, administration and monitoring is vested to the policy board—constituted under Section 9 of the DRAP Act, 2012.

Chaired by the National Health Services secretary, the policy board comprises health secretaries of all provinces and regions, DRAP chief executive officer as well as six experts from public and private sector. DRAP works under the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination.