The rules of the Medical Council of India are being planned to be modified by the government. Chemical and Fertiliser Minister Ananth Kumar said on Thursday that the modification will make it mandatory for physicians to prescribe medicines with generic names.

The minister said that the proposal is to modify the Ethics Committee regulation of the Medical Council of India so that prescribing generic medicines will become compulsory.

Under the amended regulation physicians should prescribe drugs with generic names legibly, preferably in capital letters. Not only that, it should be ensured that a rational prescription and use of drugs are also provided.

The minister also said that the issue has been taken up with the health ministry.

He said that for the government, making good quality medicines at reasonable price is of high priority. Steps taken to this end include bringing out a revised National List of Essential Medicines with more medicines in the list. He added that the price of medicines in the NLEM has gone down in the recent past and that the Department of Pharmaceuticals plans to open 3,000 ‘Jan Aushadhi’ outlets where generic medicines will be made available at prices far lesser than the MRP.

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