Monday’s National Assembly Standing Committee on Health examined a measure requiring grooms to undergo thalassaemia tests prior to marriage.
Speaking on the occasion, Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal agreed that such a law was required to control the disease which was stranding the health system.
Legislator Sharmila Sahibo Faruqui Hashaam of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) moved the measure known as “The Islamabad Capital Territory Compulsory Thalassaemia Screening Bill 2025.”
According to Mustafa Kamal, the federal capital should have such legislation.
He added that “every groom should be tested for thalassaemia and if the groom is declared positive, the bride should also get tested. My ministry will totally support the bill.” Only this legislation will help us to save our children from thalassaemia.
Mahesh Kumar Malani, the chairman of the committee who also belongs to PPP, instructed that the bill draft be further polished and presented before the next meeting together with the law ministry and the standing committee.
It is relevant to underline here three forms of thalassaemia: minor, major, and intermedia. Whereas a patient with thalassaemia intermedia can get thalassaemia major any time, someone with thalassaemia major suffers from the condition all of his life. On the other hand, someone with thalassaemia minor lives normally but carries the virus and can pass it on to his children.
The disease causes the body to stop producing red blood cells, which results in blood being transfused into the patients.
The sole treatment is a “bone marrow transplant,” which calls for a donor and is somewhat costly. One can find the condition with a basic blood test.
A patient must take medications valued in thousands of rupees once and occasionally twice a month.
Physicians object to Pims ED.
As many as 35 doctors had contacted the standing committee and complained about Pakistan Institute of Medical Sciences’ (Pims) executive director, Pims was advised of this. Earlier complaints made by doctors to the health secretary resulted in an investigation but their opinions were not in line.
Although the health secretary claimed he had already told the doctors not to attend the ministry since he was busy, they nevertheless did. Consequently, he said, doctors will be sent a show-cause notice covering this.
Announcing his displeasure, the health secretary said the doctors had been advised their meeting could not be scheduled but they nevertheless carried out their obligations and arrived to the ministry.
