As the reduction of the mark-up on medicine prices doesn?t seem to satisfy all parties, the government will have to find other ways to reduce prices. Although pharmacists refuse a reduction of their mark-up, they are ready to work with the government to find other ways of offering cheaper prices to the consumers. ?It is not worth trying to reduce the mark-up as we have already done this the past. It was a short-term decision that did lead to a drop in price last year but it has recently skyrocketed again. Even if the mark-up is zero, prices will continue to rise,? explains Ravin Gaya, the chairman of the Association of Pharmacists. The latter hope the problem can be tackled at its root, with foreign suppliers. Discussions with these firms will start soon.

After the government?s announcement that it would reduce the price of medicines, it has been confronted with the reluctance of pharmacists. They protested against such a measure, as they assured this would kill their business. Since then, both parties have been working together to find a satisfactory solution. ?We can understand that disadvantaged people find some medicines expensive,? declared the pharmacists? representative.

Although generic drugs appear as one of the easiest solutions to implement, doctors? reluctance to prescribe them is a real obstacle in this case?