Health Minister Viktor Lyashko said that despite the deregulation of the pharmaceutical market, it has not been possible to reduce the cost of medicines through competition alone.
According to him, prices for Ukrainian medicines have increased by 26-131%, and the cost of the most popular drugs has risen by 70-110%. At the same time, pharmacies receive significant marketing payments for the sale of specific medicines, which affects consumer choice and often forces them to buy more expensive drugs.
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To remedy the situation, the government has developed a number of measures. Starting from 1 March, Ukrainian manufacturers will reduce selling prices by 30% for the 100 most popular medicines. For the rest of the drugs, a declaration of a 20% price reduction for the end consumer is being introduced.
The government is also tightening control over pricing in the pharmaceutical sector. The markup on all medicines will be regulated, marketing services for their promotion will be banned until the introduction of reference pricing, and the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection will resume inspections of pharmacies.
Special attention was paid to the provision of free medicines to patients in hospitals. The state finances their procurement within the framework of medical guarantees, and the practice of forcing patients to buy medicines in private pharmacies at hospitals will be stopped.
The government emphasises that this is only part of the measures aimed at reducing drug prices and increasing the availability of medicines for the population.
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