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Fuel price surge deepening health crisis, warns PMA

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Doctors say rising fuel costs are affecting medicines, treatment and household survival IV Report KARACHI: The Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) on Saturday voiced concern over the country’s worsening economic pressures, warning that rising petroleum prices were increasing the cost of healthcare, medicines and essential food items, particularly for low-income families. In a statement issued by PMA Secretary General Dr Abdul Ghafoor Shoro, the association said recent fuel price hikes had triggered a wider inflationary trend affecting nearly every sector linked to public health and daily living. The PMA noted that higher transport and production costs had compelled pharmaceutical companies to increase medicine prices, making treatment increasingly difficult for vulnerable patients. It also pointed to mounting operational expenses faced by private healthcare providers, including electricity, transport and medical equipment costs, saying these pressures were contributing to higher...

Alarming health indicators expose systemic gaps: PMA

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On World Health Day, the association flags underinvestment, inequities in Pakistan’s healthcare system IV Report KARACHI: Marking World Health Day on Tuesday (April 7), the Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) warned that Pakistan’s health indicators remain well below even the minimum benchmarks for developing countries, urging an urgent, science-led overhaul of public health policy and spending priorities. In a statement aligned with the World Health Organisation (WHO) theme “Together for Health: Stand with Science,” Dr Abdul Ghafoor Shoro, PMA secretary general, said the country was entering the global observance amid a “deepening, multi-layered health crisis” driven by chronic underinvestment, weak governance and widening inequities in access to care. He regretted that public health needs continued to be overshadowed by non-essential expenditures, leaving critical infrastructure and services underfunded. Citing data from the World Bank, WHO and UNICEF, the PMA highlighted a se...

With health budget slashed, Pima warns of systemic impact

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Association says development budget slash will hit hospitals, disease control, and medical education Prof DrAtif Hafeez Siddiqui  IV Report KARACHI: The Pakistan Islamic Medical Association (Pima) has criticised the federal government’s proposed 16% cut in the budgetary allocations for the Ministry of National Health Services, Regulations and Coordination (NHSR&C) for the upcoming financial year, terming it "unjust" amid the country's deepening healthcare crisis. According to the budget document presented before the National Assembly on June 10, the federal allocation for the health sector has been set at Rs46.10 billion for the fiscal year 2025–26 — a significant reduction from the Rs54.87 billion allocated for 2024–25. While operational (non-development) expenditures have been increased, the development component of the health budget has suffered a major blow. The Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) budget for the NHSR&C has been slashed to Rs1...