PETALING JAYA: Private medical practitioners who have submitted applications for their 2026 Annual Practising Certificate (APC) may place orders for medicines as long as they can provide proof of their submission, says the Pharmaceutical Association of Malaysia (Phama).
The association, which represents 41 pharmaceutical multinational corporations (MNCs), said this was made possible through the intervention of the Health Ministry.
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"The ministry has said that doctors sending us evidence they have submitted and paid for their licence renewal on time are allowed to order from us," Phama told The Star on Tuesday (Jan 6).
It also hopes that the ministry will take the necessary steps to ensure that the issue of delayed APCs does not persist.
It was earlier reported that drug companies refused to sell medicines to medical practitioners without a valid APC.
On Saturday (Jan 3), Health Minister Datuk Seri Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad said that the APC for this year would take effect on Jan 1 for all medical practitioners who submitted complete applications on or before Dec 31 last year.
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He said he had taken note of concerns raised by the medical fraternity over the APC and acknowledged the Malaysian Medical Council's (MMC) statement.
Delays in processing APCs by the MMC left thousands of doctors without a valid practising licence, exposing them to legal issues.
The MMC apologised for the delay, citing a surge in applications towards the end of last year.
