Pharmacies of country under monitoring
By Nigar Orujova
The Health Ministry jointly with the Economy and Industry Ministry has conducted monitoring at pharmacies after the introduction of standardized pricing for medicines.
The head of inspections for quality control at the Center for Analytic Examination of the Health Ministry, Parviz Azizbayov, announced the preliminary results of the audits on September 29.
Inspections show that 1,057 items are on sale in pharmacies at the prices approved by the Tariff Council, he said.
Azizbayov pointed out that if there are drugs that are subject to price controls among medicines imported into the country until September 15, they should be put up for sale at prices set by the Tariff Council.
The country had begun to regulate the prices of medicines starting on September 15. So far, the prices of over 1,057 essential medicines were reduced. The prices of all medicines sold in the country are expected to be adjusted by the middle of next year.
Earlier, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Ahmadov said Azerbaijan would not face a shortage of medicines.
The country has registered more than 4,500 brands of more than 20,000 types of medicine. The number of cost-controlled pharmaceuticals will increase in the future.
Today, 57 percent of medicines registered in Azerbaijan are produced in Europe, 26 percent in the CIS countries, including the 12 percent that are made in Russia. A small share of medicines is produced in Asian countries. Moreover, Russia and Iran have offered to produce medicines in Azerbaijan.
All medicines imported to Azerbaijan are examined before reaching pharmacies and hospitals. The country bans the import of medicines into the country without a license, permission, or other relevant documents.
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Nigar Orujova is AzerNews’s staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @o_nigar
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