DELAYS in Jamaica’s drug registration process are limiting patients’ access to newer medicines while reducing competition that could help lower the Government’s pharmaceutical bill, according to AS Bryden Group CEO Paul Scott.

“This is not new. I have been complaining about this for 15 years. It is an absolute disgrace,” Scott said during Seprod Group’s annual general meeting at the Terra Nova All-Suite Hotel on Wednesday.

Scott said that Bryden Pi Limited, the group’s pharmaceutical and health-care distribution company in Jamaica, currently has more than 400 molecules awaiting registration with the Ministry of Health and Wellness. Until they are registered or otherwise approved, those medicines cannot be routinely imported, distributed or sold in Jamaica.

Among the products awaiting registration are newer hormone replacement therapy (HRT) treatments for women experiencing menopause and the latest generation of breast cancer drugs. According to Scott, Bryden Pi already distributes breast cancer medication locally, but some of the drugs available in Jamaica are five generations behind those available internationally because newer treatments have yet to be registered. Scott did not identify the drugs or explain how he defined the five generations.

Scott’s comments come amid years of announced efforts by the Ministry of Health and Wellness to improve the registration process.

In 2016, then newly appointed Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton committed to establishing an advisory committee to address issues affecting the pharmaceutical sector, including concerns raised by industry stakeholders about the registration of drugs.

Bryden Pi Limited says more than 400 pharmaceutical products are awaiting registration with the Ministry of Health and Wellness.

More recently, in his 2025 Sectoral Debate presentation, Tufton announced a package of reforms aimed at reducing approval times. The proposed measures include digitising the pharmaceutical product registration process, creating a fast-track pathway for medicines already approved by trusted regulators in the United States, United Kingdom and European Union, and introducing an express approval window for locally manufactured products. The minister acknowledged that manufacturers and importers had “long complained” about delays in receiving decisions on drug applications and said the system needed to be fixed.

As recently as March 2026, Tufton said the ministry was preparing to procure a technology provider to digitise the process and that almost 70 per cent of dossiers were delayed because of incomplete information.

“That needs to be put in as quickly as possible because people don’t really consider medicine the same way as they consider technology. But if you do not register and allow drugs to be available to your people, that’s a bit like saying everyone in the workplace must use a typewriter and not a laptop,” Scott said.

Scott also argued that reforming the registration process would have economic benefits beyond improving access to medicines. With those 400-plus pharmaceutical molecules awaiting approval, Bryden Pi is missing out on potential sales, while the country could be losing the benefits of greater competition in the pharmaceutical market. More registered drugs, he said, would make the Government’s tender system more competitive, helping to lower procurement costs.

“The more drugs available, the more competitive the tender system. Therefore, lower costs. Lower costs mean spending less money on drugs for the same amount of outcome. More money available for education, gas for police cars and et cetera, so fiscally it makes a lot of sense,” Scott said.

While welcoming the proposed reforms, Scott stressed that implementation would be key, pointing out that “sometimes there’s a gap between policy, execution and timing” and calling for less tolerance of failures in execution.