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EDITOR'S EMULSION
Ever since the deluge of digital technology has hit us, it has been evolving new models. One of the most impactful models that have evolved, is e-pharmacy. Today, the reality is that the surging burden of various health hazards remains a key challenge for a developing country like ours, that is assailed by growing population and changing lifestyles. Providing easy availability of quality medicines and treatment therapies that can reach fastest to the remotest corners of the country, has emerged as a benchmark for driving healthcare forward. Read about this and medical negligence redressal being low in India in our PSM India Capsules section of The Prescription.
The government is not only gearing up to revise schedule M to make it on par with WHO-GMP standards but is standing strongly committed to ensuring safety of vaccines too. The government is also working on a road map to increase production of bulk drugs in the country with a view to reduce import dependence of the raw materials for pharma sector from China while widening the basket of essential drugs and medical devices. Catch up on all this and more in Drug Laws and Policy Injections.
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Stay Healthy. Stay Protected.
Pooja Khaitan
Editor-in-Chief,
The Prescription
DOSE OF THE DAY
"PMJAY-Ayushman Bharat is the biggest government-sponsored healthcare scheme in the world. The number of beneficiaries is almost equal to the population of Canada, Mexico and the US taken together. A total of 13,000 hospitals have become a part of the Ayushman Bharat scheme. Our government has taken a holistic approach to lay stress on affordable and preventive healthcare.”
Hon’ble Prime Minister of India,
Shri Narendra Modi
PSM India Capsules
Medical Negligence Redressal Very Low In India Despite Huge Number Of Cases Filed
Even though thousands of medical negligence cases are filed in various consumer courts in the country, just 4,000 cases get resolved at Consumer Dispute Redressal Commissions at the state and national level annually.
E-Pharmacy: The Easiest, Fastest Way To Get Medicines?
After the long, winding path traced by the saga of e-pharmacies, now it seems that new horizons are opening up. Undoubtedly, Government, is at last ready to acknowledge the online pharmacy sector. In September 2018, it was revealed that the Government is finally arriving at a solution to seal its future. After the Government issued the draft of the Drugs (Sale and Distribution) Rules, 2018 targeting at removing ambiguity on regulations to facilitate sales of drugs online, there's been a wave of expectations running across the e-pharmacy startups. This has been visible in the last few months.
Drug Laws & Policy Injections
Govt Gets Ready To Revise Schedule M To Make It On Par With WHO-GMP StandardsNew Delhi, 12 Oct 2018: The ministry of health has decided to revise regulations pertaining to manufacturing practices under Schedule M of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules of 1945 to make them on par with the World Health Organisation good manufacturing practice (WHO-GMP) standards. 
Indian Govt Stands Committed To Ensure Safety Of Vaccines New Delhi, 3 Oct 2018: There have been reports in a section of the print media mentioning that bivalent oral polio vaccine supplied by a particular manufacturer had some quality issues.
Govt Aims To Raise API Production To Cut Chinese DependenceNew Delhi, 10 Oct 2018: The government is working on a road map to increase production of bulk drugs in the country with a view to reduce import dependence of the raw materials for pharma sector from China, a commerce ministry report said.
Govt To Widen Basket Of Essential Drugs, Medical ProductsNew Delhi, 10 Oct 2018: The government has decided to increase the basket of medicines and medical products—such as devices, disposables and hygiene items—that it says should be available within the health system in adequate numbers and assured quality.
Niti Aayog To Re-Examine Proposal To Cap Medical Device Trade Margins After PMO RejectionNew Delhi, 9 Oct 2018: The central policy think tank, the National Institution for Transforming India (Niti) Aayog, is re-examining its proposal to cap the unreasonably high trade margins on medical devices and has started holding talks with various industry stakeholders to draw up an alternative plan, it is learnt. The apex policy-making body’s proposition to scrap the current price control mechanism for medical devices and set trade margin cap at 65 per cent on the first point of sale or stockist was rejected by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) last month.
Amarinder Calls For National Policy To Check Drug AbuseChandigarh, 1 Oct 2018: Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh on Monday called for a national drug policy to save the young generation, saying a comprehensive formula was needed at the central level to effectively check the drug abuse.
Pharma Injections
UP To Open 6 Pharma Parks; Gets Rs 5,000-6,000 Cr Commitment Lucknow, 12 Oct 2018: The Uttar Pradesh government is planning to open six pharma parks across the state and has received an investment commitment of about Rs 5,000-6,000 crore from domestic and multinational pharma companies, a senior minister said Thursday.
Supreme Court Upholds Injunction On Wockhardt In Passing Off Action By TorrentNew Delhi, 9 Oct 2018: The Supreme Court last month dismissed Wockhardt’s petition against a Bombay High Court order which had restrained the pharma giant’s continued use of the impugned mark “CHYMTRAL FORTE”.
Pharmacists Should Not Equate Themselves With Doctors Just Because They Know Medicines: PCI President Chennai, 10 Oct 2018: Pharmacists should refrain from making tall claims that they are equal to medical professionals since they have knowledge in pharmacy and studied about medicines. Such claims are ridiculous and lower the dignity of the pharmacy profession, said Dr B Suresh, president of the Pharmacy Council of India.
Right The Wrong In Doctors' Writing New Delhi, 8 Oct 2018: Close on the heels of the Allahabad High Court penalising three doctors for illegible handwriting in the medico-legal (MLC) reports drafted by them, the government’s policy-making NITI Aayog has said it is time to move towards computerised prescriptions and MLC drafting.
Academia and Industry Collaborate To Innovate Novel Formulations New Delhi, 5 Oct 2018: Delhi Pharmaceutical Sciences & Research University, New Delhi (DPSRU), first Pharmacy University of India, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding for collaboration with Alniche Lifesciences, a pharmaceutical company headquartered in New Delhi to develop innovative formulations in the field of Nephrology & Critical care.
Drug Cos Hit By Hike In Irradiation Charges To Sterile Medical Products With Shutdown Of ISOMED Mumbai, 8 Oct 2018: Drug manufacturers have written to the Board of Radiation Isotope and Technology (BRIT) to control the sudden hike in charges by private gamma irradiation processing plants to sterile medical products with abrupt shutdown of government run radiation processing ISOMED facility.
Drug Dopes
Doctor MPs Approach PMO To Repeal Oxytocin Curbs, Punch Holes In Minister's Health Hazard ArgumentNew Delhi, 11 Oct 2018: While the clock ticks on the government’s controversial ban on oxytocin production by private companies for domestic use, two prominent lawmakers from Punjab and Rajasthan, both of them medical practitioners, have joined the chorus of critics and approached the Prime Minister’s Office for repealing the proposed restrictions. 
The Spotlight Is On Disposal Of Unused Drugs In KeralaKOCHI, 8 OCT 2018: Pharmaceutical wastes generated by hospitals and pharmacies are effectively handled at IMAGE, Palakkad, a common biomedical waste treatment and disposal facility established by the Indian Medical Association. However, the disposal of expired and unused drugs from households was unacknowledged until recently.
GFSU Study Finds Antibiotics In 20% Of Raw Milk Samples AHMEDABAD, 8 OCT 2018: That glass of milk that you or your children consume every morning may be serving you a shot of antibiotics as well, and may pose the risk of weakening your immune system while strengthening the drug resistance of bacteria in your body, say experts.
Plea Alleging Faulty Hip Implants: SC Seeks Centre's Response New Delhi, 5 Oct 2018: The Supreme Court Friday sought the Centre’s response on a plea alleging that “faulty” and “deadly” hip implants, made by US-based pharma major Johnson and Johnson, have been fitted into the bodies of 14,525 Indian patients.
A Drug Was Expected To Work And Be Safe Till The Expiry Date: HC Bengaluru, 4 Oct 2018: A pharma manufacturing company, whose cough syrup was found to be “not of standard quality”, claimed in the High Court that it was tested on the last day of the expiry date and therefore it should be absolved of the case filed against it under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
Delhi High Court Issues Notice In Petition To Close Online PharmaciesNew Delhi, 5 Oct 2018: The Delhi High Court has issued notice in a petition seeking closure of online pharmacies that are offering drugs and prescription medicines through websites.
National Injections
Indian, UK Authorities Clamp Down On International Medicines Crime Mumbai, 13 Oct 2018: In an effort to prevent unlicensed medicines entering into the UK market, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) of UK is working closely with law enforcement agencies in India.
Senior Citizens Allege Low Quality Medicines Supplied Under CGHS In HyderabadHyderabad, 11 Oct 2018: Senior citizens and other government employees who are receiving medicines under the Central Government Health Scheme (CGHS) in Hyderabad are alleging that agencies which are entrusted to provide medicines to the patients under CGHS scheme are given low quality medicines of brands other than prescribed by the physicians.
Delhi: Govt Hospital Operation Theatre Shut Over Reports Of Eye Infection NEW DELHI, 10 OCT 2018: The operation theatre at Guru Nanak Eye Centre — a hospital run by the Delhi government — has been shut down for maintenance following reports that some patients who underwent surgery last week developed a reaction.
Maha FDA Files FIRs Against Drug Peddlers For Selling Spurious Ayurvedic Drugs Mumbai, 9 Oct 2018: In its ongoing crackdown on people selling spurious drugs, the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has filed FIRs against three people who were selling ayurvedic medicines containing scheduled allopathic drugs.
Botched' Eye Surgeries: HC Acquits Doctors Of Negligence MADURAI, 8 OCT 2018: The Madurai bench of the Madras high court has set aside orders by lower courts which ruled doctors of Trichy-based Joseph eye hospital guilty of gross negligence in connection with botched-up cataract surgeries in which several patients lost vision in their operated eye.
Plea Alleging Faulty Hip Implants: SC Seeks Centre's Response New Delhi, 5 Oct 2018: The Supreme Court Friday sought the Centre’s response on a plea alleging that “faulty” and “deadly” hip implants, made by US-based pharma major Johnson and Johnson, have been fitted into the bodies of 14,525 Indian patients.
Global Injections
US FDA Releases Method For Detection And Quantification Of Both NDMA And NDEA Maryland, 11 Oct 2018: FDA is posting a redeveloped combined gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC/MS) headspace method for detecting the presence of impurities N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) and N-Nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA) in valsartan drug products.
EMA Committee Recommends Restrictions On Use Of Quinolone And Fluoroquinolone London, 10 Oct 2018: A European Medicines Agency (EMA) committee has recommended that the use of fluoroquinolone and quinolone antibiotics should be restricted following a review of their disabling and potentially long-lasting side effects.
European Patent Granted For Absorption Systems' IDAS2
EXTON, Pa., 2 Oct 2018: Absorption Systems, a global leader in the science of translational medicine, announces that the European Patent Office has issued a Decision to Grant European Patent Number 3221696 on September 26, 2018. The patent, titled "System for the Concomitant Assessment of Drug Dissolution, Absorption and Permeation and Methods of Using the Same," covers the In Vitro Dissolution Absorption System (IDAS2™), a groundbreaking, first-in-class technology. The patent covers the following jurisdictions: Denmark, France, Germany, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
Alanine Amino Acid May Help With Type 2 Diabetes
Washington D.C. [USA], 11 Oct 2018: According to a new research, the amino acid called alanine may provide a brief lowering of glucose levels by altering energy metabolism in cells.
Natural Antibiotic Shows Promise Against Drug Resistant
England, 21 Sept 2018: Researchers report that a naturally occurring antibiotic, kanglemycin A, is effective against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the bacteria that cause tuberculosis (TB), even in drug-resistant strains. The team, which used chemistry, molecular biology, microbiology, and x-ray crystallography to show how the compound maintains its activity, published its study (“Mode of Action of Kanglemycin A, an Ansamycin Natural Product that Is Active against Rifampicin-Resistant Mycobacterium tuberculosis”) in Molecular Cell.
6 Artificial Sweeteners That Can Hurt Your Microbiome Revealed In New Study
Singapore, 1 Oct 2018: Sugar substitutes, once hailed as silver bullets that make it okay to take your coffee extra-sweet, have been dealt another blow. A new study published in Molecules calls out six sugar substitutes for causing strange DNA damage in gut bacteria or just straight-up killing tiny, helpful microorganisms in the body.
PSM PILL
Counterfeit Medicine Purchased Online Permanently Alters Man’s Vision
October 12, 2018: As reported by Motherboard, several doctors recently published a study documenting a case of retinal toxicity caused when a 31-year-old man took too much sildenafil citrate, the active ingredient in popular erectile dysfunction drugs. The man had purchased the drug in liquid form off of the Internet. Retinal toxicity is an eye disorder that affects how a person sees different colors.
Ten-Month-Old Leo Holz Died After Accidentally Ingesting A Counterfeit Fentanyl Pill
Leo Holz never experienced many milestones in his short life. He never came close to big ones like graduating from high school or falling in love. He never learned how to read, how to tie his shoes, how to cross the street safely, or the importance of sharing. Leo was only ten-months-old when he died on September 18, 2017 after innocently putting something he found on his parents’ bed into his mouth. That something was a fake pill made with fentanyl and it stole Leo’s life from him.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is Congestive Heart Failure?
Ans: Heart failure, sometimes known as congestive heart failure, occurs when your heart muscle doesn't pump blood as well as it should. Certain conditions, such as narrowed arteries in your heart (coronary artery disease) or high blood pressure, gradually leave your heart too weak or stiff to fill and pump efficiently. Read More>>>
SUBSCRIBER'S SYMPTOM
Campaign Against 'Antibiotic Resistance' In Delhi
Article contributed by Dr.Prateek Sinha, Indore
The Health Care Foundation of India, in collaboration with the National Centre for Disease Control and the World Health Organisation, is set to launch a campaign to raise awareness against the irrational use and prescription of antibiotics at the 'Health Mela' to take place in the Delhi between October 23 and 27.
Blog Addicts
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