NHA releases consultation paper on drug registry

The registry will be a single, up-to-date, centralised repository of all drugs across all systems of medicine

The National Health Authority (NHA) has released a consultation paper on drug registry. Envisioned under the ambitious Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission (ABDM), the registry is intended to be a single, up-to-date, centralised repository of all the drugs across all systems of medicine which are approved and are available in the Indian market, noted a release by the Health Ministry on Friday.

The drug registry application is proposed to be designed using open-source technologies and will be interoperable. The consultation paper focuses only on the registry within the National Digital Health Ecosystem and offers the NHA’s current vision on the functionalities of the proposed registry, the process for its creation and potential benefits to various ecosystem stakeholders, the Ministry noted.

Each section has specific open questions where feedback from stakeholders is sought. Comments from the public are invited to ensure that the registry is designed and developed in a collaborative and consultative manner.

R.S. Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, National Health Authority, said: “Through the drug registry, the ABDM aims to provide a standardised, comprehensive set of verified data on all the approved drugs marketed in the country that would enable a more efficient regulatory process.”

The NHA is leading the implementation of the ABDM in coordination with different ministries/ departments of the Government of India, State governments, and private sector/ civil society organisations. It aims to bridge the existing gap among different stakeholders of the healthcare ecosystem through digital highways.