Question Period Note: India - Pharmaceutical Imports

What is Canada doing in response to recent delays in the release of pharmaceutical products from India?

• India is the largest global provider of generic medicines and plays a key role in contributing to the global pharmaceutical supply chain

• There were delays in the release of shipments of certain pharmaceutical products from India to Canada as a result of export restrictions that were put in place by India on March 3

• The Government of Canada actively engaged Indian officials on this issue and, on April 6, India removed the majority of these export restrictions

• Restrictions remain on a single pharmaceutical product, hydroxychloroquine, but India has been approving exports to Canada on a case-by-case basis.

In 2019, Canadian imports of pharmaceutical products from India amounted to $410 million, including $386 million of medicines destined to retail sale, $12.6 million of pharmaceutical goods and $6.3 million of other medicines.

On March 3, India restricted the export of 13 active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), and formulations made from these.

On March 25, India added hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) to the list of restricted exports; a drug used to treat lupus and rheumatoid arthritis, among other ailments.

Under mounting international pressure, India rescinded the export restrictions on all APIs, leaving HCQ as the only pharmaceutical product remaining on the restricted list.

Since then, India has permitted the export of 5 million HCQ tablets along with 3510 kg of HCQ API to Canada. The Government of Canada is working closely with the Government of India on other orders to ensure that Canada's critical medical needs are met.

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