JEDDAH, 12 September 2007 — The Health Ministry intends to cut prices of more than 6,000 medicines in a move to reduce the financial burdens on both citizens and residents. Details of the plan will be announced during Ramadan, according to Health Minister Dr. Hamad Al-Manie.
“We have already cut the prices of some medicines. For example, we reduced the price of Lipitor from SR140 to SR76,” the minister said in a statement carried by Al-Jazirah Arabic daily.
A prescription drug, Lipitor is used in patients with multiple risk factors for heart disease such as family history, high blood pressure and low good cholesterol (HDL). It is used to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke, a pharmacist said.
The reduction in prices was expected following the establishment of a national company for the unified purchase of medicines and medical appliances with a capital of SR2 billion.
The Council of Ministers, which approved the company last month, said it would be the sole supplier of medicines and medical appliances to government health institutions.
Saudi Arabia is one of the largest markets for medicine in the Middle East. About 10 Saudi companies have captured 50 percent of the market which is estimated to be worth more than SR5 billion. The average annual growth rate of the market is calculated at 10 percent. There are nine Saudi pharmaceutical companies that supply less than 20 percent of market requirements.
Medicine importers in the Kingdom currently cater to the needs of 65 percent of private hospitals and polyclinics and 35 percent of government hospitals. There are 200 hospitals under the Health Ministry. Investments in the Kingdom’s private and public health sectors are estimated at SR500 billion with an annual expenditure of some SR50 billion.
Some medicine importers in the Kingdom have expressed fears that the creation of the new firm would drive them out of business. Saudi medicine supply companies have made a combined investment of more than SR5 billion for building warehouses, establishing offices and purchasing cold storage vehicles.
Saudis and expatriates alike welcomed the move, hoping that it will bring down the skyrocketing prices of medicines and medical appliances in the country. “This will certainly improve health services in the Kingdom,” they said.
Medicine prices in Saudi Arabia are among the highest in the world, pharmacists say.
“If we compare prices in the Kingdom with those in India they are unbelievably high,” said one pharmacist in Jeddah. The price for Lipitor in India is just SR7 whereas in the Kingdom it was SR140. Zantac 150m is sold for SR67.70 in the Kingdom and SR7 in India. Clavix, a drug used by heart patients is very expensive in the Kingdom (SR249 for 28 tablets) while in India it is SR8.
One pharmacist attributed the rise in prices to the import of medicines from Western countries. The USA, UK, Switzerland, Germany, Japan and Belgium are the major suppliers competing for a chunk of the market. There are approximately 200 pharmaceutical companies in Saudi Arabia registered with the Ministry of Health. The market is dominated by European suppliers, with over 40 agents in the Kingdom importing medicines from international pharmaceutical companies.
