Alisher Kadyrov proposes tougher liability for over-the-counter drug sales

Alisher Kadyrov, a deputy of the Legislative Chamber of the Oliy Majlis and leader of the Milliy Tiklanish Democratic Party, has announced that a proposal is being prepared to strengthen liability for selling medicines without a prescription. He wrote about this on his Telegram channel.

Kadyrov noted that there is a very large pharmaceutical business operating in the country, where profit-making takes precedence, while people’s health is not treated as a primary concern. According to him, the main objective is often simply to sell medicines.

“If a person with diabetes develops even a single wound, they suffer severely. To treat such a patient, medicines worth 5–6 million soums are prescribed. We see this with our own eyes: people come from the regions, are prescribed medicines, and then are effectively prepared to die along with their diabetes. When you look at what these 5 million soums’ worth of medicines consist of, they turn out to be dietary supplements. What do dietary supplements have to do with diabetes?” Kadyrov said.

He added that those “sitting there” are engaged precisely in the pharmaceutical business. Some medicines may give a person a temporary feeling of vigor, others may have different effects, but, as he stressed, that is not the main issue. The core problem, according to the deputy, is the need to eliminate the very notion of turning sick people into commodities in Uzbekistan.

Speaking about potent medicines, Kadyrov said that merely increasing fines after lawmakers initiate changes would not be sufficient. “If the ‘red prescription’ works and has an effect, then antibiotics and, in general, all medicines should be transferred to the ‘red prescription’ category so that it becomes completely impossible to purchase them in pharmacies without a prescription,” he said.

According to him, strengthening the rules banning the sale of medicines without prescriptions will be met with extensive resistance and counter-campaigns. He argued that this is because a certain group of “unscrupulous compatriots,” who have turned people’s need for healthcare into a source of income, require the ability to sell medicines freely in pharmacies, regardless of whether they are legal or illegal, effective or ineffective. At the same time, he expressed sincere respect for pharmacists, doctors, and entrepreneurs who conduct their work honestly.

“It is not you who should decide which medicine to take. That decision must be made by a doctor,” the party leader said.

It is worth noting that earlier, authorities explained how the list of medicines dispensed under the Electronic Prescription system will be formed.