Turkish medication imports up to record-high $2mln in August - Health Minister
Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili had decried the former high prices of medicines in Georgia before the initiation of the imports, calling them a “great burden on our population”. Photo: Nino Alavidze/agenda.ge
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Georgian Health Minister Zurab Azarashvili on Friday said Georgia had imported medications worth ₾6.4 million ($2 mln) from Türkiye in August, marking a “record-high figure” since Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili’s initiation in January of the project on importing medical drugs from the country to ensure competitive prices on the domestic market.
Azarashvili said Georgian buyers had saved ₾80 million ($28 mln) through the reduced costs on medication since the launch of the imports, with the figure expected to reach about ₾200 million ($68 mln) annually.
In addition to the opening of the Turkish market, the Ministry of Health is also working on the implementation of reference prices to reduce existing costs of medications. As part of the reform, an upper limit will be set on the cost of medicines, which will significantly lower the price”, Azarashvili said.
After initiating the drug imports from Türkiye, Garibashvili said in January companies would be allowed to import all pharmaceutical products approved by Türkiye without further national authorisation, citing the “considerable gap” between the cost of the drugs produced using the Good Manufacturing Practices standard on the Turkish market in comparison with their cost in Georgia.
In March, Garibashvili estimated the medication prices in the country had been reduced by 60-80 percent as a result of the first batches of pharmaceuticals imported.
About 200 types of Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP)-standard drugs, imported from Turkey, will be available on the Georgian market in about a month, Deputy Health Minister Ilia Gudushauri said on Monday.
Import of medications from the Turkish market has “significantly” decreased the prices of “dozens” of medical products in Georgia, Health Minister Zurab Azarashvili said on Saturday.
Georgian Health Minister Zurab Azarashvili and his Turkish counterpart Fahrettin Koca have agreed on an “even closer” cooperation between the countries in the field of medical services and pharmaceuticals, the Georgian Health Ministry announced on Wednesday.
General prices for medicines on the Georgian local market have been reduced by 60-80 percent following the import of medications from Turkey, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said earlier today.
Plans for expanding the list of medicines under the reference price system, ensuring full functioning of a drug quality laboratory and approving a nursing development strategy were among healthcare system plans for 2023 discussed on Wednesday between Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili and Health Minister Zurab Azarashvili.
The Georgian Health Ministry on Friday said the prices of Turkish-imported medicines would not increase, adding Georgian companies would still be able to purchase them at lower prices on the Turkish pharmaceutical market and import them to Georgia, on the backdrop of increased prices in Turkey.