Medicine prices drop - health minister says
Armenian Health Minister Armen Muradyan told the parliament today that a regular monitoring of prices of 54 most popular medicines shows that prices of 47 medicines in 2016 March have dropped by 4% from 2015 December, while prices of seven medicines have increased by 2.8%.
In response to lawmakers’ questions during a Q&A parliamentary session the minister said that all price changes are continuously monitored by the ministry and the reasons are analyzed.
The minister reminded that the lawmakers had already passed in the first reading a bill On Medicines, which provides for stricter control over the entire chain of medicines- from production to sale.
According to the minister, the new law provides for the availability of medicines, the need for the issuance of prescriptions for reducing the negative consequences of self-treatment, as well as compulsory licensing, which he said will improve the quality of medicines.
"I think that the new law will lead to qualitative changes in the field and provide mechanisms for increasing the access to medicines," said Muradyan.
Muradyan also said that together with the State Commission for Protection of Economic Competition his ministry is monitoring all possible abuses by companies dominating in the market.
He said four major companies which hold about 66.5% of the market and import of medicines are under constant supervision. -0-