The Ministry of Health of the Russian Federation has transferred the popular emergency contraceptive drugs “Postinor” and “Escapelle” to over-the-counter status, Kommersant writes.
“Postinor” and “Escapelle” are drugs with the active ingredient INN levonorgestrel (synthetic hormone progestogen). They differ in dosage, but have the same effect.
The pharmaceutical company Gedeon Richter, which produces both drugs, reported that the decision on over-the-counter status was made by the Ministry of Health taking into account international experience in their use, as well as its own research in terms of the safety of taking the drug without a doctor’s prescription.
At the end of 2023, the Ministry of Health included misoprostol and mifepristone in the list of drugs subject to subject-quantitative registration – they are used to terminate pregnancy. At the same time, mifepristone in small dosages is also used for emergency contraception.
The fact that the Ministry of Health limited the circulation of drugs with misoprostol and mifepristone, but assigned over-the-counter status to levonorgestrel, the publication notes, caused bewilderment among the interviewed participants in the pharmaceutical market. “In fact, we are talking about providing some market players with more favorable conditions,” said Nikolai Bespalov, development director at RNC Pharma.
The Ministry of Health, in turn, told Kommersant that levonorgestrel and mifepristone belong to different pharmacotherapeutic groups. “Comparison of control measures for drugs belonging to different pharmacotherapeutic groups is incorrect,” the Ministry of Health emphasized.
Over-the-counter status allows you to sell medications, including online trading.
The inclusion of a drug in the list of subjects subject to quantitative registration means, in particular, that doctors must write prescriptions for it in a special form, and pharmacies and hospitals must keep strict records of it.
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2024-02-06 07:42:00