Government to bar homeopathy doctors from selling medicines

CHEMISTS SELLING ALLOPATHIC MEDICINES WILL ALSO BE ALLOWED TO SELL HOMEOPATHIC MEDICINES WITHOUT THE NEED TO HAVE A SEPARATE LICENCE

NEW DELHI: Homeopathy doctors will soon be barred from selling medicines from the premises they are practising in, according to new rules proposed by the government that are to be notified soon. “No registered homeopathic medical practitioner who is practising homeopathy in the premises where homeopathy medicines are sold, shall deal in homeopathy medicines,” according to the new draft rules.

The new rules were drafted following complaints that commercial interests were influencing behaviour of homeopaths, two government officials privy to the development said.

“It was seen that pharmacists had started to station a homeopath in their shop for consultations. Likewise, homeopathy practitioners other than dispensing their medicines to their patients had started selling them over the counter too,” said one of the two officials cited above.

“Once notified, this will delink consultation and selling of medicines. Chemist shop is a commercial entity and the objective of this rule is to ensure that doctors only prescribe and not sell medicines,” said the official cited above, requesting anonymity.

According to one of the draft rules, chemists selling allopathic medicines will also be allowed to sell homeopathic medicines without the need to have a separate licence as required now. “These medicines shall be sold in the original sealed small quantity packing and they will have to be stored separately from allopathic drugs,” said a health ministry official, one of the two cited above.

The proposed rules also aim to weed out non-qualified people from dispensing homeopathy medicines.

A person eligible to practice medicine with prescriptive rights should hold a degree in homeopathy from a recognised university or a degree in pharmacy from the recognised university or Bachelor’s degree from a recognised university, with one year experience in dealing with homeopathic medicines in the clinic of a registered homeopathic medical practitioner or with the holder of a license in Form 20C or form 20D (applications for retail are made under these forms) or diploma in homeopathic pharmacy or a diploma in homeopathy and surgery.

Homoeopathy medicines are covered under the provisions of Drugs and Cosmetic Act, 1940.