As Health Ministry issues diktat on cough syrups, questions arise over OTC enforcement
‘Enforcement in smaller localities and towns could prove more difficult’
India's Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has recently mandated prescriptions for cough syrups, prompting questions about how effectively the new regulations can be enforced. Currently, people in India regularly purchase medicines without a prescription, but the Centre's decision to make cough syrups prescription-only aims to prevent overdoses, incorrect dosing, and misuse of potentially harmful ingredients like chlorpheniramine and phenylephrine.
Hyderabad-based paediatrician Sivaranjani Santosh welcomed the move, emphasizing that tighter controls are necessary due to these risks. However, many in the pharmaceutical industry remain uncertain about the practicality of the new rules, given the consumers' accustomed habit of buying OTC medications. Pharmacists, pharmacists, and pharmacists expressed concerns over how these restrictions would work in real-world scenarios.
Some worry about counterfeit, adulterated, and unbranded medicines, while others argue that the blanket prescription requirement may not effectively address the issue of instant relief that many consumers seek.
Written by urgent.news from The Hindu's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
