Doctors cannot run drug stores without licence: FCC

• Observes Pharmacy Act and Drugs Act perform different legal functions • Sets aside 2023 PHC order restraining regulatory action ISLAMABAD: The Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) on Friday ruled that a registered medical practitioner (doctor) may prescribe and dispense medicine to his own patient within the scope of Section 31(4)(a) of the Pharmacy Act 1967, but cannot maintain a medical store or retail drug outlet without a licence under the Drugs Act 1976. The FCC issued the ruling while setting aside a June 5, 2023 order of the Peshawar High Court’s D.I. Khan bench, which had restrained…