Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Tamiflu on medical stores

Anupam Srivastava

LucknowOsetelemvir phosphate better known from its brand name Tamiflu willsoon be available at Schedule X medical shops in the state. Afterbanning the sale of Tami flu from the retail market the centre hasprepared a plan to make it available on schedule X counters amidstrict watch on physician, distributor and retailers.The decision regarding that was taken during the meeting of ministryof health government of India in New Delhi on September 3 in whichmedical suprintendent of Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute ofMedical Sceicnes participated.“ A consensus was reached in the meeting and union health ministerGhulam Nabi Azad endorsed the idea to make the tablets available onschedule x shops soon,” said medical superintendent SGPGIMS Dr AKBhat.The Centre has not permitted sale of Tamiflu in the retail market sofar apprehending its abuse, which can lead to the resistance to themedicine in swine flu cases.The medicine would be released as a Schedule X drugs, sales of whichare governed under the strict norms, like obtaining two sets ofprescriptions from a doctor and obtaining a special license for thedistributor and retailer said Bhat.There are only five 5-schedule X medical stores in the state and noschedule X medical store is present in whole Uttarakhand.Usually medical stores avoid having schedule X licence because thereis a lot of paper work involved in it.Presently psychotropic drugs for the treatment of epilepsy and relateddiseases are sold as Schedule-X medicines by the counters. Under this
the doctor writes two prescription the patient keeps one prescription,the second set is handed over to the retailer. The retailer maintainsa logbook on the sale of Schedule-X medicines.The authorities periodically check these documents. Bhat said during the meeting of experts recommendations given by thecentral and global health agencies, were also discussed.“ The medicine will be only given with a prescription. The chemistswill have to maintain his logbook and other records which will enablegovernment agencies to keep a track of the medicine supply and conductan audit of the sale of drug,” said Bhat

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