Irakli Lekvinadze - The purpose of our recommendations is a significant reduction in consumer costs for medicines
At the initiative of the Prime Minister of Georgia, defining new game mechanisms and ensuring transparency in the pharmaceutical market has launched. For this purpose, the interim results of the pharmaceutical market monitoring, covering the 2016-2020 period, are being published by the Georgian National Competition Agency.
„According to the interim monitoring report, the high costs of citizens are often due to uninformed choices, less popularity of generic and interchangeable medicines, and the holding systems on the market, which has somewhat of a commercial interest.
Analysis of specific / selected medications reveals that if the prescriber made decisions based on the patient's interests and
Analysis of specific / selected medications reveals that if the prescriber made decisions based on the patient's interests and by ensuring adequate competition between the substitute products in the market, the consumer would save at least 16 million GEL (2016-2020), achieving an identical healing effect.
The customer should be able to make an informed choice. Accordingly, the recommendations prepared by us following the best international experience and analysis of the market structure in the country, as well as the legislation, aim to a significant reduction in consumer cost. The recipe must be generic and contain only alternatives, which ensures a fundamental competitive market environment. However, the prescription must be electronic only so that the industry regulator can effectively control the market.
Demand in the market is formed, first at the level of the doctor and, in some cases, the pharmacist. Accordingly, the top indicator of the competitive environment is evaluating the degree of competitive pressure among the substitute drugs on the market.
It is important to note that inadequate legislation and a lack of effective law enforcement leverage lead to potential conflicts of interest and self-interest between the prescriber and the pharmaceutical company / medical institution.
Most of the recommendations presented by us include the relevant legislative changes. The Agency expresses its readiness to take part in this process, including at the level of consultations with industry experts, stakeholders, companies operating in the market, and the industry regulator. “- Explains Irakli Lekvinadze, Chairman of the Georgian National Competition Agency.
The National Competition Agency provides 11 recommendations: only generic prescription; Indication of a generic substitute; Review of free pricing policy; Limiting the holding structure of the market; Control of an alleged negative consequence of vertical and horizontal market integration; Perfecting treatment guidelines; Introduction of GMP standard; Introduction of a unified system only for an electronic prescription; Continuous prescription control; Tightening and effective control of the sanctioning mechanism; Ensure maximum transparency and publicity of the relationship between the prescriber and the pharmaceutical companies.
According to the interim report of the pharmaceutical market monitoring: the total cost of imported medicines is increasing in GEL, in particular: in 2016 - 565 million GEL, 2017 - 676 million GEL, 2018 - 655 million GEL, 2019 - 716 million GEL, and 2020 - 798 Million GEL.
The total share of the 3 largest companies at the market import level is consistently high, in particular: 2016 - 56.6%, 2017 - 69%, 3 2018 - 70%, 2019 - 68.8%, 2020 - 67.5%. That determines the possible dominant position at the level of relevant markets / substitutable products.
