Jan Aushadhi centres in more govt hospitals

Hospitals across the state have been asked to identify space on their premises for setting up of Janaushadhi stores to supply generic medicines.

The commissioner, department of health and family welfare, has said that generic drug stores will be started in government-run general hospitals across the state. This the department believes, will give a boost to generic drugs.

The department has said that hospitals that have department approval will get drugs worth Rs 1 lakh to begin with, besides other financial assistance to initiate the store. Another lakh would be given towards repair, renovation and refrigerator facilities for the generic store. Qualified Individuals and organisations can approach the commissioner.

The commissioner has also said that as hospitals house the Janaushadhi and Jana Sanjeevini stores that sell generic drugs, the onus will lie on the hospital's management to ensure that they function properly.

In a circular, the commissioner has said that the hospitals will have to ensure that these generic drug stores neither sell nor stock any branded medicine. Hospitals will also be required to send a weekly report on the same.

The hospitals will also have to keep a check on whether the stock is sufficient and revision of prices of medicines.

Medicine procurement

The commissioner has also directed hospitals to procure medicines from these stores if they are not aavailable in the in-house pharmacy or if the hospitals run short of drugs supplied by the Karnataka State Drug Logistics and Warehousing Society. They can bre procured as per norms laid down under the KTTP act, he has said.