Low price drugs brewing prices

Low price surges or coming soon. On October 15, Taiji Group, a listed company, issued an announcement announcing that its ex-factory price of Huzhou Xiangqi Oral Liquid, an exclusive product, will be raised by 20%. According to the List of Low-priced Drugs within the Pricing Range of the National Development and Reform Commission, Huoxiang Zhengqi Oral Liquid is a low-priced drug. It is reported that since the National Development and Reform Commission released in May this year the maximum retail price of low-priced drugs, low-priced drugs will have prices have almost "struck." Insiders said that even if prices of low-priced drugs increase, they are within the acceptable range of the public. Moreover, whether the price increase is for the protection of varieties of low-priced drugs, or the safety of drugs, or even reducing the national health insurance expenditure, it is very favorable. .

Visits: There is no rise in the price of drugs in the ear pharmacy. Drugs do not rise and fall compared to low-priced drugs, “price surges,” the uproar, Guangzhou city pharmacies seem to be relatively quiet.

The reporter visited a number of chain pharmacies in the city and found that some of the low-priced drugs prices did not change much. For example, 10 units of Huoxiangzhengqi Oral Liquid produced by the Taiji Group are in the chain of Dashenlin Pharmacy, Neptunus, and People’s Pharmacy. The pharmacy still has a selling price of 13 yuan, and if the blood pressure is controlled by reserpine, the price is 8.3 yuan, the membership price is 7.2 yuan, and the cheaper one is still around 3 yuan. The price has remained stable; and at the end of last year The hyperthyroidism tablets that are concerned about hyperthyroidism are out of stock, and the clerk of the Da Senlin pharmacy era rose garden store told reporters that the drug has been sold out for two months.

The reporter also found that the price of low-priced drugs in some pharmacies was lower than before. Such as Baojiakang Pharmacy Sports West Road, Huoxiang Zhengqi Oral Liquid and reserpine, the price was 6.5 yuan and 4 yuan, according to the clerk introduced, the price is lower than other pharmacies due to the recent promotion activities.

Bai Yun District, a single pharmacy operator, Mr. Liang told reporters that Huoxiang positive water prices in the industry despite the uproar, but its replenishment on October 17 found that prices did not rise, but it also from the supplier It was learned that, in terms of purchase price, except for the very few types, there was no general price increase in low-price drug prices.

In addition, Mr. Wu, a hypertensive patient who took reserpine all the year round, said in an interview that he expressed “quiet” prices for low-priced drugs because it is acceptable to raise the price within a few bucks. What he is more worried about is that these drugs may be sold out because the prices are too low.

Status quo: Policy support is difficult to stop low-priced drugs "extinction"

Due to the low annual profit, and the substantial increase in the costs of raw materials, auxiliary materials, and packaging materials and manpower, the greater the company’s production, the greater the loss, which has caused some low-priced drugs to be almost extinct in the market, such as the high-profile methimazole tablets in 2013. The selling price is only about two yuan. The low annual profits also make it difficult to obtain a drug in the market so far.

On May 8th this year, the National Development and Reform Commission released the “Low-Price Drugs Catalogue Within the Pricing Range of the NDRC” (hereinafter referred to as the “Catalogue”), canceling the maximum retail price of 530 drugs, and production companies can spend no more than RMB 3 per day on Western medicines. The average daily cost of Chinese patent medicines is not more than 5 yuan under the premise of independent pricing. This measure made the price of low-priced drugs "green" in policy.

In fact, it is not the Tai Chi Group that has started to raise the price of low-priced drugs. Before Taichi Pharmaceutical announced the price increase of Huoxiang Zhengqi Oral Liquid, Guangdong Jiaying Pharmaceutical announced the price adjustment announcement as early as May 20, announcing its entry into the “Catalogue”. The prices of 12 products such as Jiedu Pills will be adjusted; in addition, there are small increases in the production of Danshen Tablets and Norfloxacin Capsules produced by Yunnan Baiyao.

According to industry insiders, the liberalization of the maximum retail quota for low-priced drugs has also mobilized the production enthusiasm of enterprises to a certain extent, and effectively eased the situation of out-of-stock. However, there are still some people who believe that low-priced drug companies will not rise sharply and that there is indeed room for price increases for the drugs included in the list of low-priced drugs. However, the vast majority of low-priced drugs are produced in the same variety, and competition is fierce. If the pharmaceutical companies blindly increase prices at this point in the factory, they will only break the back road.

Experts: Price increase is only an expedient measure Although the price trend of low-priced drugs is difficult to avoid, but for companies, the price increase is only an expedient measure.

An enterprise person who did not want to be named said that although low price drug prices are a protective measure, under the current situation where high-priced drugs are popular, low-priced drugs still face severe survival difficulties. Moreover, such a low rate of price increase, in accordance with the current pricing standards, even if the price increase, is still a drop in the bucket for the production company's profits.

“In my opinion, in terms of price, compared to high-priced drugs, such low-priced drugs are as much as a few dollars, and as little as a few hairs are not worth mentioning, but if they do not rise, these effects are very good and low prices. The medicine will eventually disappear, which will also greatly increase China’s health care expenditure.I think that in addition to price protection, the proportion of low-priced drugs should also be included in the assessment indicators of doctors, and in addition to the treatment of some single diseases, Increase the proportion of low-cost drugs," said the above person.

In addition, Yu Mingde, president of the China Pharmaceutical Enterprise Management Association, also believes: “Although the maximum retail price of low-priced drugs has been liberalized, but the price increase can only mobilize the production enthusiasm of pharmaceutical companies to a certain extent, only from the production link can not Solve the plight of low-priced drugs. If pharmacists are unwilling to act, pharmacies are reluctant to purchase goods, and doctors are reluctant to prescribe drugs, these low-priced drugs cannot be brought to the hands of patients."