KUWAIT CITY, March 11: Reports have been circulating about a group of pharmacists planning an open sit-in at the Ministry of Health headquarters in the coming days to protest the ongoing decision regarding the timing of granting licenses to private pharmacies.

However, health sources have indicated that the sit-in is unlikely to occur due to the imminent expiry of the decision’s term. They explained that the decision of the Minister of Health Dr. Ahmad Al- Awadhi to stop granting licenses to private pharmacies was issued at the beginning of January. More than two months have passed, which means the period for its implementation will end in 20 days, as the duration of the decision is only three months. The decision included new licenses only, as there were reports that the minister had approved the renewal of licenses for existing private pharmacies during the last period. This means the existing private pharmacies can continue and the suspension is only for new licenses.

On the other hand, several pharmacists expressed their concern about the possibility of the decision being extended before it expires at the end of March. They stressed that the recent health decisions were taken into consideration, and need further scrutiny and review. The pharmacists stressed the importance of organizing the work of pharmacies in the private sector in a way that keeps pace with developments in pharmaceutical services and contributes to reducing the burden on the services provided by the ministry. They said the decision to suspend licenses, as well as the decision issued earlier to close some private pharmacies, had negatively harmed the interests of citizens and pharmaceutical services as a whole, and cost the state budget exorbitant amounts of money in compensation cases.

By Marwa Al-Bahrawi
Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff