Meeting of the pharmaceutical business with Vereshchuk: market participants warn of the consequences of the new regulation

Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Iryna Vereshchuk met with representatives of the pharmaceutical market to discuss the new regulation, which will come into force on March 1, 2025, UNN reports.

Tuesday's meeting was attended by representatives of all parts of the pharmaceutical market - manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacy chains. In addition, the meeting was attended by Health Minister Viktor Liashko and his deputy Edem Adamanov, representatives of the Antimonopoly Committee, and specialized associations. The meeting was also attended by Serhiy Kuzminykh, a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Health, and Yulia Tymoshenko, leader of the Batkivshchyna party and head of the parliamentary provisional investigatory commission.

In particular, they discussed the risks that the new state regulation of the pharmaceutical market may lead to, such as a shortage of imported drugs, higher prices for medicines, termination of social programs that allow patients to receive discounts on therapy, and the formation of a list of the Top 100 medicines that should see their prices reduced by 30%.

As one of the participants of the meeting told UNN, representatives of the pharmaceutical market asked the Minister and his deputy a number of uncomfortable questions about the unreasonableness of the legislative innovations. In particular, it is unclear on what principle the 20% quota for distributors will be calculated.

The conversation also emphasized that the new regulation will force foreign companies to significantly reduce their presence in the Ukrainian market or leave it altogether. This will lead to a shortage of imported medicines.

It was noted that some social programs, such as TherapyPlus and Razom, have already been suspended and patients are forced to buy medicines at full price.

In addition, it was said that the new regulation of the pharmaceutical market would deprive Ukrainians in the frontline areas of access to medicines, as pharmacies operating there would be forced to close.

According to an interlocutor of UNN, after voicing the risks and uncomfortable questions, Lyashko left the meeting without warning before it was over.

Another important aspect discussed with Vereshchuk concerned the list of drugs published by the Ministry of Health that will see their prices reduced by 30% starting March 1, 2025.

As it turned out during the conversation, this list was not compiled by the ministry, but by five domestic producers.

"This list was not prepared by us, it was given to us by the producers," Deputy Minister Edem Adamanov told the audience, which surprised Vereshchuk.

Another UNN source who also attended the meeting said that the deputy head of the Presidential Office emphasized the need for a dialogue with representatives of the pharmaceutical market.

"Vereshchuk has included all the working groups that are possible. Another working group will be set up at the Ministry of Health, and it is not clear what will happen next," said the meeting participant.

Recall

The Verkhovna Rada passed in the second reading the draft law No. 11493 on the regulation of the pharmaceutical market. In particular, one of the provisions is the establishment of a margin limit of 8% for distributors and representative offices of foreign pharmaceutical companies. In addition, the Government adopted Resolution No. 168, which sets limits on supply and retail markups for all medicines, not just for certain categories, as is currently the case.

The European Business Association has previously called on the President of Ukraine to veto the draft law passed by the Parliament due to concerns that the innovations may negatively affect the health of patients.

Concerns about the new regulation of the pharmaceutical market were also expressed by a number of patient organizations, which are concerned that vital medicines will disappear from pharmacy shelves in Ukraine. 

Add

Health Minister Viktor Lyashko has not ruled out a possible reduction in the range of medicines in pharmacies after the law comes into force, which could affect the availability of medicines for Ukrainians.