Government News

The Health Ministry  held a video conference with the States/UTs on various issues relating to regulation of Oxytocin including the status of preparedness of the State Governments for implementing the amended rules in regard to manufacture, distribution and sale of Oxytocin. The video conference also assessed the stock of Oxytocin in the States to ensure that there is no shortage after the restriction order on its manufacture for domestic use comes into effect from 1st September, 2018.

The Union Cabinet chaired by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its ex-post facto approval for the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO), India and National Agency for Drug and Food Control (BPOM), Indonesia on cooperation in the field of pharmaceutical products, pharmaceutical substances, biological product and cosmetics regulatory functions.
The MoU was on signed on 29th May, 2018 in Jakarta.

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its ex-post facto approval for the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between India and Cuba on cooperation in the field of Traditional Systems of Medicine and Homeopathy.  The MoU was signed on 22.6.2018.

The Central government has moved forward with its plan to bring all implantable medical devices and other critical medical equipment under the purview of Section 3 (b) (iv) of the Drugs and Cosmetics (D&C) Act 1940 to ensure quality and reliability.

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has restricted the manufacture of Oxytocin formulations for domestic use to public sector only from 1st July 2018. It has also banned the import of Oxytocin and its formulations.
From 1st July 2018, no private manufacturer will be allowed to manufacture the drug for domestic use.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Commission have updated their guidance to help pharmaceutical companies prepare for the United Kingdom’s (UK) withdrawal from the European Union (EU).

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Government of Norway to extend the cooperation within health sector through the Norway India Partnership Initiative (NIPI) for a period of three years starting from 2018 to 2020, here.

The Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) has taken step to introduce an effective “trace and track” mechanism on  top 300 brands, which would be included in the initiative. The top 300 brands were identified on the basis of moving annual total (MAT) data.

In an endeavour to encourage health innovations in India and Africa, a conclave was organised by the Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI), Amref Africa, the Institute of Development Studies, UK (IDS UK), Indian Institute of Public Health Gandhinagar in partnership with NITI Aayog. This event was hosted at the GE Healthcare Centre in Bengaluru.

The National Institutes of Health plans to end funding to Moderate Alcohol and Cardiovascular Health (MACH) trial. National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) funding for the MACH trial will end within the next few months following completion of an orderly closeout.