The problem of accessibility of medicines was raised today at the offsite press conference of 24.kg news agency.
According to representatives of «Partner Network», incidence of socially significant diseases, including HIV, tuberculosis, hepatitis continue to grow in the country. Annually about 650 new HIV cases are detected, the number of cases of drug-resistant tuberculosis is increasing, and the estimated number of people with parenteral hepatitis exceeds 300,000.
To ensure effective treatment in the country, new clinical protocols have been approved, a new List of Essential Medicines has been developed, and a new law on medicines has been adopted.
At the same time, donor funds reduce, and the state’s spending on the purchase of medicines is growing. At the same time, there are no vital drugs on the drug market, or there is a monopoly on vital drugs, and therefore there is no possibility of their state purchases or their cost is unaffordable for both the state and the citizens.
According to Aibar Sultangaziyev, executive director of «Partner Network» Association, when purchasing medicines, the prices for medicines are 3-4 times higher than in the neighboring pharmacy. «There are also problems in the sense that there are monopoly medicines. For example, patients after organ transplant purchase drugs at a price that is 2 times higher than in the world. The same situation is with cancer. Therefore, it is necessary to initiate amendments to the law on public procurement, so that the state can buy drugs through international organizations,» he said.
In Kazakhstan, for example, the course of treatment for HIV a year cost $ 2,000, and after the transfer of purchases through international ones their value decreased 10 times, they saved 4 billion tenge.
Aibar Sultangaziyev
Participants of the briefing also noted that, contrary to the Law on board of guardians adopted in 2014, there is still no board of guardians in the country’s medical facilities that could help improve the transparency of medical organizations.
Anara Eshkhodjaeva, an expert of the Department of Social Development of the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic, supported the creation of board of guardians «at least at the level of national centers, so that purchases and medicines are carried out transparently.»
