Pharmacies support the initiative to reduce drug prices and warn about the risks of the new draft law

"The Pharmacy Professional Association of Ukraine has confirmed its readiness to reduce drug prices. At the same time, the APAU calls on President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to veto the draft law No. 11493 on the regulation of the pharmaceutical market because it could lead to destabilization of the industry, UNN reports.

The APAU has consistently supported the idea of reducing prices for medicines and shares the Government's initiative to reduce prices for the 100 most popular medicines among Ukrainians,

The public union remindedthat the APAU had submitted its own proposals to the Ministry of Health to reduce the cost of medicines. In particular, the members of the association propose to reduce the cost of medicines, namely to apply a discount on their markup proportional to the manufacturer, while leaving the manufacturer the opportunity to determine the amount of such a discount on products.

At the same time, the EBA members express concern about the enactment of Draft Law No. 11493, which may lead to destabilization of the pharmaceutical market in the short term

In particular, according to them, if the law comes into force, there may be a shortage of drugs, and the range of goods in pharmacies, including imported ones, may decrease. This is especially true if we take into account medicines for palliative care of patients and those that require compliance with the appropriate temperature regime or special storage conditions, such as vaccines.

In addition, effective and safe medicines with proven efficacy may disappear due to the focus on the  price characteristic of medicines. This will make it impossible for patients to access quality treatment.

There is also a risk that unprofitable pharmacies will be closed, especially in frontline regions, small towns and villages, which will reduce the population's access to essential medicines.

After the law comes into force, financial resources for paying employees and providing appropriate training will decrease, leading to a shortage of personnel.

The APAU warns that such changes in the regulation of the pharmaceutical industry could lead to the development of a "shadow market", online sales of a significant number of low-quality medicines to consumers, and a decrease in revenues to the Ukrainian budget through taxes and fees.

All of this will lead to a decline in Ukraine's position in global rankings of the investment climate and business climate after the law comes into force.

The EBA emphasized that in order to implement the NSDC decision to ensure the availability of medicines, special attention should be paid to the issue of establishing a "consolidated and balanced percentage of markup" on medicines so that pharmacies can continue to operate. This issue has become particularly acute after the ban on marketing agreements, which covered a significant portion of operating expenses, enabling pharmacies to maintain the lowest markup on medicines - 14% over the past 10 years.

At the same time, the APAU members assured that they continue to work to ensure uninterrupted access to medicines for the population.

Recall

The European Business Association called on the President of Ukraine to veto the draft law "On Amendments to the Law of Ukraine ‘On Medicines’" (No. 11493)adopted by the Parliament, which is aimed at regulating the pharmaceutical market. The EBA's appeal states that the draft law may have a negative impact on patients' health. 

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 may affect the availability of medicines for Ukrainians. 

Add

Last week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a decision must be made to reduce drug prices.

On February 13, the President enacted the decision of the National Security and Defense Council to reduce the price of the top 100 medicines by 30% starting March 1 - the most important medicines for Ukrainians. Other medicines are to fall in price by 20%.

In addition, on February 14, the Cabinet of Ministers held a meeting to introduce new regulations on drug pricing. Among other things, starting from March 1, a ban is imposed on the provision of marketing services, medicines promotion services, information and other services related to the sale of medicines to the end user.