Twelve Pharmaceutical companies are to brand 33 products for the health insurance ecosystem in the first phase. Already, NHIA has chosen seven states (Delta, Enugu, Gombe, Jigawa, Niger, Osun, and Sokoto states) and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for the pilot phase of this initiative.
The initiative, in collaboration with the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control, NAFDAC, is to ensure Local Pharmaceutical manufacturers are strengthened to guarantee medicines security.
The essence is to help reduce the proliferation of substandard and falsified medical products and enable the Agency to establish a baseline for monitoring compliance.
The National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Pharmaceutical Companies and Drugs Management Organisations (DMOs) for the production of 33 different drugs to address the perennial problem of out-of-stock syndrome in health facilities.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja, the Director General NAFDAC, Professor Mojisola Adeyeye, said, the categories of drugs involved would start from simple to complex, which will be used to address prevailing health conditions in Nigeria, such as malaria, upper respiratory tract infections, childhood illnesses and drugs being used by pregnant women.
” As mentioned earlier, every drug to be manufactured will be certified and approved by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC)- in terms of quality, safety, and efficacy. The medicines will be tested in the WHO-Prequalified NAFDAC Laboratory. Also, as part of its post-marketing surveillance activities, NAFDAC will continue monitoring to ensure that these branded medicines are used exclusively in the nation’s healthcare facilities. They are not to be found on the shelves for sale ” she warned.
DG NAFDAC noted that the branding of NHIA medicines and other health products was introduced as a way to help eradicate out-of-stock syndrome, as well as ensure the quality of its medicines. The 33 drugs will be branded with NHIA inscription under the National Health Insurance Authority.
” NAFDAC, through the Directorate of Registration and Regulatory Affairs will also ensure that appropriate and adequate labeling of the medicines are met in line with the Agency’s labeling requirements and accordance with NHIA guidelines ” Adeyeye
She stressed that NAFDAC will continue to collaborate with NHIA to ensure that the terms spelled out in Executive Order 3(EO3) will be implemented to enable the attainment of Universal Health Coverage as specified in the National Drug Policy.
” The operational guidelines are crucial to clarifying the roles, responsibilities, and obligations of various stakeholders in the health sector because access to affordable quality health care for all Nigerians is key on the path to achieving Universal Health Coverage “. She added
NAFDAC developed a GMP Roadmap five years ago, which continuously assures that pharmaceutical manufacturers in Nigeria remain compliant with global best practices. The GMP roadmap was designed to guide and help local manufacturers upgrade their facilities and procedures in line with current good manufacturing practice requirements, noting that the initiative has enabled the Agency to establish a baseline for monitoring compliance and ensure that appropriate and adequate labeling of the medicines are met in line with the Agency’s labeling requirements and by guidelines.
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