The High Court on Monday (November 24) ruled that the government, not pharmaceutical companies, will determine the prices of life-saving medicines.
In 2018, Human Rights and Peace for Bangladesh filed a public interest petition challenging a circular that limited the government’s authority to set medicine prices. The petition argued that medicines are essential for human life and health, and restricting government control infringes on citizens’ right to survival.
After hearings, the High Court bench—justices Rezaul Hasan and Bishwajit Debnath—declared the Ministry of Health’s circular invalid on August 25 this year, ordering that the government must set prices for life-saving medicines and publish them in the official gazette.
Under the Drug Control Ordinance of 1982, the government had fixed prices for 739 medicines in 1993. In 1994, the authority was limited: the government retained pricing power for 117 medicines, while manufacturers were allowed to set prices for the rest.