Drap urges public to scan medicine packs in Mehfooz Dawa app to check price

Drap wants you to scan the barcode on your medicine pack before you trust it. The Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan has urged the public to use its Mehfooz Dawa app to check that a medicine is genuine and to see its listed price, Dawn reported on Monday 9 November.

What the app does

Sajid Shah, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Health Services, told Dawn that Drap has set up a 2D barcode system. A person with a smartphone can scan the code on a pack to see the product's details and its price, which is the quickest way to spot a pack that is not what it claims to be or is being sold above its listed price.

Behind the app is a track-and-trace system for medicines distributed across Pakistan. According to the spokesperson it became operational on 9 October. It lets the authorities follow a medicine through the supply chain and pull a product back faster when there is a complaint or a quality problem.

The scale

Roughly 800 pharmaceutical companies and more than 90,000 medicines are registered with Drap, the spokesperson said. The barcode idea was first proposed in 2015 and approved by the federal cabinet in 2017, but bureaucratic delays held it up. Health Minister Mustafa Kamal later took notice of the delay and Drap had set 1 October as the cut-off for launching the system, Dawn reported.

Why it matters now

Drap has issued a run of warnings in recent weeks. It named batches of fake Augmentin, Velosef, Nasomet, No-Spa Forte and Mucaine found in Karachi, and flagged fake flu vaccine batches. The government has also told Drap to review how medicine prices are set, saying prices should not rise without a valid reason. A scan on the counter gives a buyer a way to check both the product and the price themselves.

What to do at the pharmacy

• Scan the 2D barcode on the pack in the Mehfooz Dawa app before you leave the counter, particularly for antibiotics, injections and vaccines.
• Compare the price the app shows with what you are charged. If they differ, ask the pharmacist why.
• If a pack has no barcode, or the scan shows nothing, treat it with suspicion and do not use it until a pharmacist or doctor confirms it.
• Keep the pack and receipt if you want to complain.

You can find nearby shops in our pharmacies directory. Dawn's report does not say how the app handles a pack that fails to scan, or whether older stock without the code is covered, so ask your pharmacist about stock bought before the system started.