Kazakhstan's Ministry of Health is phasing out state price regulation for inexpensive medicines. Drugs costing up to one monthly calculation index — 4,325 tenge — are being removed from government control, infohub.kz reports.
"As part of the phased deregulation of medicine prices, drugs costing up to 1 MCI, which is 4,325 tenge, are being removed from state regulation," the ministry said in a statement.
According to the ministry, the measure will broaden the range of medicines available in pharmacies, boost competition and make drugs more accessible to citizens. Market players will now set prices for these products themselves, based on demand. The change covers more than 1,200 inexpensive medicines that will move to market-based pricing.
The ministry has nearly halved the list of medicines whose prices it controls, from 3,039 to 1,827 items. Prices will be artificially held down only for the most essential drugs, so that they remain affordable for the population.
Prices for other medicines will be dictated by the market, but the ministry will tighten oversight of pharmacies to prevent unjustified price increases.
The ministry also recalled that if Kazakhs find evidence that maximum retail prices for medicines have been exceeded, they can use the DariKZ app to submit a complaint, along with supporting materials — a sales receipt and the medicine's packaging — to the regional departments of the Committee for Medical and Pharmaceutical Control.
Earlier, Kursiv wrote that medicines purchased by the state for free distribution to patients were being sold illegally in Kazakh pharmacies. The large-scale scheme was uncovered thanks to digital labeling.