Prices for locally manufactured medicines and medical devices fell by 8-44% compared with January last year, the Head of Department for Quality Control of Medicines and Medical Devices of the Uzbek Ministry of Health, Habibullo Jalilov announced.
Fixed prices for over 300 kinds of socially important medicines and medical devices were introduced on January 1 pursuant to the Presidential Decree "On measures to further improve provision of medicines and medical devices" of 31 October.
Prices are to be fixed on quarterly basis by the National commission formed to oversee the provision of medical facilities and population with medicines and medical devices based on the analysis of world prices.
"We have recently observed rising number of cases of violation of norms when doctors were prescribing imported medicines instead of local ones. Also, prices vary at pharmacies, which causes justified dissatisfaction among people ", - Habibullo Jalilov said.
Starting from this year, the maximum markups are to be applied for wholesale and retail sale of local and imported medicines and medical products, regardless of the number of intermediaries in the supply chain.
In all 5,500 pharmacies in Uzbekistan there will be Consumer Corners, where a minimum list of drugs and medical devices mandatory for all pharmacies, list of medicines sold without a prescription at fixed prices will be available.
