Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad said these laws were the Price Control Act and the Anti-Profiteering Act 2011.
“The proposed price control mechanism is to set a ceiling selling price for all consumers at all dispensing channels seen to be the most suitable for implementation and in line with international practices.
“This move will indirectly standardise the prices of medicine and ensure the people’s access to affordable drugs,” he said.
Dzulkefly (PH-Kuala Selangor) was replying to Charles Santiago (PH-Klang) who had asked about the measures taken by the ministry to standardise medicine prices in Malaysia and the government’s strategy to reduce them.
On the government’s initiatives to help the local generic medicine industry, Dzulkefly said the ministry had always encouraged efforts to use affordable generic medicine by giving priority to the locally produced medication when procuring drugs for the public sector.
He said the ministry’s procurement of medicine was based on the principles of public accountability, transparent management, best value, as well as fair and just competition.
“The procurement process is done either by open tender or the appointment of a concessionnaire company, based on existing laws and government procurement rules which are in force,” he said.
He added that procurement through imports would only be considered after confirmation that such medication could not be obtained locally.
Last year, he said, the percentage of generic medicine compared to innovators stood at 53.6%, at a procurement value of RM1.3 billion. Of this amount, 50.3% was locally produced.
To a further question by Santiago on the prices of drugs in Malaysia which were higher by 30-180% than in other countries like Australia, Dzulkefly acknowledged the situation and said this was why the government was working towards the price control mechanism.
He said through World Health Organisation guidelines in regulating markups in the pharmaceutical supply and distribution chain, they could determine a ceiling price which would be the most important mechanism in the standardisation of drug prices.
“I understand the differences in prices at pharmaceutical outlets, dispensaries, and specifically in private hospitals, because the problem of prices being marked up is happening without any control.
“I admit that private hospitals have the tendency to charge more compared to government hospitals,” he added.
To Santiago’s question on the measures taken by the government to help the local generic drugs industry develop and export products to other Asean countries, Dzulkefly said it was the government’s policy to help the local industry thrive.
He said there were at least 18 generic drugs companies, of which 10 are Bumiputera firms, involved in the supply of such drugs through concessionnaires like Pharmaniaga, whether through tender or direct procurement.
He added that local producers were made subject to two different tests to ensure the safety and efficacy of the drugs.
To Ahmad Maslan (BN-Pontian), who asked whether generic drugs were considered “second class”, Dzulkefly said this was not true.
“When a generic drug can be registered after passing BioEquivalence studies and BioAvailability studies, there is no term like second class. They are of the same standard as innovator drugs.
“The drugs are produced by the industry and are of the same level in terms of effectiveness and safety.”