ISLAMABAD, (Parliament Times) : Sana Ullah Ghumman, General Secretary and Director Operations of Pakistan National Heart Association (PANAH), criticized the move to push back the Health Contribution Bill on tobacco and sugar sweetened beverages, The burden of disease continues to rise sharply,Heart, diabetes, obesity, cancer are not only fatal, expensive treatable diseases,Their treatment is beyond the reach of white-clad citizens.According to the International Diabetes Federation’s ongoing report on diabetes, we were expecting a health emergency from the Prime Minister.Pushing the Health Contribution Bill for another seven months, which has been delayed for 2 consecutive years, is not the right thing to do, which is strongly condemned by health and the public sectors.
Sana Ullah Ghumman on behalf of Federal Finance Minister Shaukat Tareen Reacting to a report by an English-language business recorder who was reportedly opposed to a tax increase under the Health Contribution Bill on tobacco and soft drinks, he said that The move to defer the Health Contribution Bill for another seven months raises new questions.It raises the question of whether increasing the burden of public health and disease has not been among the government’s priorities.
He said that Federal Minister Shaukat Tareen says now is not the right time to introduce new taxes.The Finance Minister’s stubbornness shows support for the industry.People ask whether the increase in diabetes from 19 million to 33 million cases is not enough?We will wait for the burden of more diseases to increase.If there is no time to increase the consumption of Sugar sweetenbed Beverages and tobacco products, then is there a right time to increase the prices of petroleum products ,electricity, gas for the people suffering from economic crisis?
December 2019 According to the American Diabetes Association, increasing consumption of sugary drinks is linked to an increased risk of type 2 diabetes.According to an article published in the Global Diabetes Community on January 15, 2019, large-scale research shows that regular consumption of Sugar sweetenbed Beverages increases the risk of obesity, heart disease and type 2 diabetes and many other diseases.According to the 10th edition of the International Diabetes Federation’s (IDF) Diabetes Atlas, Pakistan ranks third in diabetes, then China and India.33 million people in the country are living with diabetes, even if timely measures are not taken.Diabetes alone will increase the risk of death to 400,000 people this year.
He said that Isn’t this investigation enough to respond to the Finance Minister’s failure to provide a verified investigation into the negative effects of Sugar sweetenbed Beverages and tobacco on health?
We strongly appeal to Prime Minister Imran Khan to increase these practices with the help of Health Contribution Bill on Tobacco and Sugar sweetenbed Beverages, to reduce the burden of diseases and increase the revenue by billions of rupees.
