Drugs price to rise up to 10%

Drug prices have increased by 3-10 per cent since early this month due to a price hike in material and other input costs, according to industry insiders.

Price hikes have been reported on more than 60 drugs, most of which are imported pain relievers and treatments for cardiovascular diseases and diabetes.

In late February, the prices of roughly 240 drugs surged by 3-30 per cent.

Chairman of the Viet Nam Pharmaceutical Comp-anies Association Do Van Doanh said that drug producers had been forced to adjust prices after experiencing losses due to rising input and material prices.

The domestic drug market is 90 per cent dependent on material imports and 50 per cent dependent on imported medicines.

In addition to boosting locally made products to avoid drug price hikes, the Government also needed to successfully control inflation, Doanh said.

Pharmaceutical production, like many other industries, was negatively affected by high inflation, he said. In addition to rising material costs, drug producers also had to pay more for power, water and labour.

“However, we will bid stable drug prices at public hospitals in order to supply drugs at the lowest possible prices for all of 2012,” Doanh said.

Under current regulations, pharmaceutical companies that have supply contracts with hospitals must ask the Viet Nam Drug Administration for approval if they want to raise drug prices. Hospital pharmacies must also post a list of retail drug prices which may not exceed market prices.

Source VNS

Tags: Vietnam Drug industry, Vietnam Drug prices