Mercosur wants to increase access to medication
Member countries signed a deal creating a work group to study ways of increasing people's access to medication and cut down prices, especially those of costlier medicines.
Access to medication was among the most talked-about topics at the 37th Meeting with Mercosur Ministers, which ended Thursday (Jun 11), in Brasília. Member countries signed a deal creating a work group to study ways of increasing people's access to medication and cut down prices, especially those of costlier medicines. The conclusion of the studies will be presented during the next gathering, slated for September.
Health ministers and their representatives mentioned already existing methods for lowering prices, like international joint purchases. According to Brazil's minister Arthur Chioro, a decision has been made to compile a unified price list for Mercosur and devise a plan for the purchase of the most sought-after and expensive drugs for the treatment of rare diseases, “in a way that enables us to use the public purchasing power, the power of negotiation with the pharmaceutical companies, in the most advantageous manner, in order to make sure patients have access to them,” he explained.
Brazil's Health minister Arthur Chioro
Chioro said that the access to costlier medicines is a common problem in the countries represented at the meeting, once the competition between them is rather low and the amounts purchased often small, which could lead to even higher prices in nations with a smaller population. As an example, Argentina's Health minister Daniel Gollan mentioned the price of a medicine for Hepatitis B, which costs in his country twice as much as it does in Brazil, and five times its price in Peru.
The agreement also makes it possible for a member country to buy medication obtained as part of another country's bidding, which may lead, however, to a change in its legislation. Furthermore, a list with a few high-priority medicines is expected to be created for all countries, so that they may be bought with funds from the Pan American Health Organization (Paho). These resources aim at large-scale purchases of medication for the countries in the region. Over $4.5 billion has been predicted as Brazil's 2015 budget for medication.
Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Venezuela, Bolivia, Chile, Uruguay, and Peru have also signed deals aimed at addressing common problems, such as traffic-related deaths, the amount of sodium in food, transplants, and the high number of cesarean sections.
Translated by Fabrício Ferreira
Fonte: Mercosur wants to increase access to medication
