Nadda for innovation of cheaper new drugs

Union Health Minister JP Nadda today underlined the need for innovation of new drugs at low cost which are affordable to the poorest, even as he sought to strike a balance between the commercial and medical spendings.
"We need innovation not only in technology but also in medical appliances and in methodology. In pharmaceutical sector we are good in generics but we have to consider to innovate new drugs at low cost," Nadda said.
He was addressing a seminar on 'Health for All: Leveraging Technology, Innovation and Enablers' on the second day of the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit-2015 here.
Making an appeal for innovation, Nadda said, "While addressing the Indian Science Congress recently, our prime minister talked about developing and innovating scientific inventions that should be helpful for the remotest and vulnerable person in the society."

He said there should be a balance between commercial and medical spendings and that (innovation of) drugs should be viable in terms of affordability.
"There is always a bottleneck in health sector and I am here to give you the political commitment on behalf of Prime Minister Narendra Modi that whatever you suggest will turn into reality," the health minister said while appealing to delegates to give suggestions in formulating new Health Policy.

Speaking on the occasion, UNICEF's representative to India, Louis-Georges Arsenault pressed for a common need for innovation to make available affordable drugs.
"We need innovation in drugs that may be affordable and efficient in quality for India in this critical time," he said, adding five countries, including India, Nigeria, Pakistan, Congo and China are facing the highest neonatal mortality rate in the world.

Neta Menabde, WHO representative to India, observed service in healthcare needs to be comprehensive in India.
"We definitely need more population-based services, without that we won't be able to get good service. We will have to have new and affordable technology," she said.