State government has announced setting up of 18 AMRIT (Affordable Medicines and Reliable Implants for Treatment) stores across the medical college hospitals of J&K, which will make affordable drugs accessible to patients.
Government has appointed Controller drugs, Lotika Khajuriaas Nodal Officer for the AMRIT project under which affordable drugs will bemade in prominent hospitals of the State. A press handout stated that aMemorandum of Understanding (MoU) had been signed between respective medical superintendentsand Hindustan Lifecare Limited. The operations are expected to start in twomonths. The stores will operate under the aegis of GoI.
“The stores will offer medicines, implants, surgical andophthalmic products 24 x 7,” the handout said and that the purpose of theinitiative is to provide quality and affordable medicines to the end users.
The press handout also stated that the AMRIT pharmacies,operating under the aegis of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Governmentof India, offered more than 5200 drugs, implants, surgical disposables andother consumables at average discounts upto 60 percent of maximum retail price.
In the previous year, 118.52 lakh people in country availedits services and against MRP value of drugs. The handout appreciated the roleplayed by principals of the Government medical colleges and called it “pivotalin ensuring that it reaches patients”. Financial secretary health and medicaleducation has been monitoring the progress himself on regular basis, it said.