The updated catalog of prices for medicines that the Ministry of Health has launched together with the new state register, is already alarming with specialists. According to the Deputy Director of the Agency of Situations Alexei Golobutsky, the pricing mechanism, provided by the Ministry of Health, can become an instrument of artificial increase in prices for medicines.
In his Facebook post, the political scientist drew attention to abnormally high prices, which some manufacturers declared. In some cases, prices have already approached the maximum limits, although they were previously lower than the average market.
" This can testify to a systematic game of advance - in order to fix the high reference price before the MoH refreshes the method of calculation ," Golobutsky said.
He sees a particular danger in manipulation by importers who can register their products as "original". This allows them to build a higher starting price and to actually displace competitors with Ukrainian generics.
“ Ukrainian manufacturers can be forced to reduce prices by at least 25%, which will simply be economically economical for many. This is the risk of mass exit of domestic companies from the market , ”the expert says.
Thus, even a slight "distortion" of the methodology of forming a catalog of the Ministry of Health can lead to the price deformation of the entire pharmaceutical market.
Holobutsky called on the profile ministry to promptly track the first results of the new catalog to prevent a situation where a state mechanism designed to protect patients will become a tool for profit for individual pharmaceuticals - and at the same time a blow to Ukrainian manufacturers.
