15 June 2007 Rating 8% No Comment  

Alternattiva Demokratika have presented a set of proposals outlining measures that the government and its authorities can take in order to reduce the cost of medicines. Party Chairperson Dr. Harry Vassallo stated that "the rising cost of medicines is having an impact not only on government finances but moreover on those families and individuals who are not entitled to free medicines from the government. Whilst we recognise that Malta is ultimately a "price taker" in medicines since we import almost everything we still believe that there are some measures the government can take to reduce the cost of medicines." Edward Fenech, Party spokesperson for finance explained that "government seems to be in a state of denial about the increase in the price of medicines, whilst the Labour opposition moans about this problem without proposing workable solutions. As a responsible opposition party we are proposing the following solutions that are aimed to tackle the problem over the short, medium and long-term." Mr. Fenech explained his party's proposal to deal with the cost of medicines in the short-term. He stated that "research shows that between 10%-30% of medicines are thrown away following the passage of the expiration date. This is very often due to the fact that when consumers purchase prescription medicines "over-the-counter" they are not given the exact number of pills or capsules prescribed by their doctors but are sold standardised packets or boxes that contain more that the number prescribed. The excess pills very often get thrown away after the expiry date passes. This represents a real cost to consumers. Therefore we are proposing that government explores measures to demand that consumers are sold the exact amounts prescribed. Although it may be that the individual cost of each pill may have to rise to compensate the pharmacy, this can still result in a very significant saving to consumers, by eliminating waste. We believe that this measure alone, can reduce the cost of prescribed medicines by at least 10%; possibly even as high as 30% in some cases." Mr. Fenech added that "over the medium term government should aim to ensure that the appropriate consumer protection and monitoring mechanisms are in place. At present they are not. Therefore we are proposing that government commits to kick-starting and financing an independent consumer association that will act, amongst other things, to check any uncompetitive practices, not just in the market for pharmaceuticals, but in all retail sectors. In many EU countries such consumer associations have existed for decades and are effective. It is about time that the Maltese government uses part of the hundreds of millions of liri in taxes it collects from consumers, namely through VAT, to finance the establishment of an independent watchdog to protect consumers." Dr. Vassallo stated that "over the long-term the key measure we are proposing to government to manage the costs of medicines is investment in prevention. The best way to reduce the costs of medicines is to promote healthier lifestyles that will result, albeit in the long-term, in a healthier population. A healthier population will, by definition, spend less on medicines. We recognise that government has embarked on a number of programs, including one on child obesity, however more investment and better promotion is needed. Every lira we invest today in this manner will give a very significant return in the future."