Jordan OKs Viagra As Unions Call For U.S. Drug Boycott
AMMAN (AP)--Jordan has approved the sale of the impotence drug Viagra, an official said Thursday, a day after two unions of pharmacists and doctors called for a boycott of U.S. and British drugs to protest air strikes on Iraq.
A Health Ministry official said the ministry has registered Viagra, produced by New York-based Pfizer Inc. (PFE), as a scheduled drug.
The actual sale will be delayed until the ministry receives further documentation from Pfizer on the drug's side-effects, but this is considered a formality.
The drug should be available within eight weeks, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
After initial hesitation, three other Arab countries - Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates - approved the sale of Viagra this year.
On Wednesday, the Jordanian Pharmacists Association and the Jordan Medical Association had called for a boycott of pharmaceutical products from the U.S. and Britain.
The boycott isn't legally binding and exempts those drugs for which no substitute is available.
Because Viagra is unique, it will be exempt from the boycott, Abdul Rahim Issa, the chairman of the Jordanian Pharmacists Association, told The Associated Press.
Mohammad Sabbagh, the managing director of Pfizer's local agent, Sabbagh Drug Co., said Viagra will be sold only on medical prescription for 36 Jordanian dinars ($51) for a pack of four pills, which is similar to the international price. |
