Uncontrolled drug market in Kosovo

The lack of drugs registered in Kosovo's pharmaceutical market is one of the problems facing citizens. As a result, patients face a lack of drugs they use as daily therapies.

The other alternative that has been modernized recently is buying online drugs. They can order each citizen through a website and order them home.

But how safe are these drugs?

A citizen, Bekim Kupina, says the drug market remains uncertain even when drugs are bought in drugs, let alone if they are provided by unknown producers and vendors through different platforms and social networks.

I, personally, have not served with such drugs because I don't feel safe. I think even these drugs that are in the Kosovo pharmaceutical market do not offer me maximum security as a citizen of this country. On the other hand, knowing that there is no great security in controlling these drugs, I anyway avoid them in any version of online drug purchase”.

I think that we should be served, however, with drugs on our market, although there are dilemmas of whether to go through the relevant control filters. It would be good to have no need for them” at all, says Cupina.

For the sale of online drugs, Health Minister Albattri Matosh says that this issue is designed to be adjusted in the future after the functioning of the Health Information System, when electronic recipes would also be created. For now he says citizens should be careful with the use of these drugs because they are not controlled.

“Online shootings are currently prohibited and the Kosovar Agency for Medical Products( AKPM) has urged citizens not to buy in that form. The side effects of drugs on the Kosovo market are monitored through the AKPM's pharmaceutical department. Online sales are designed to be adjusted in the future after functioning in the Health Information System when electronic recipes would be created. They are now banned and citizens should not be deceived by these unknown vendors”, Matosh claims.

Otherwise, drugs at Kosovo drugs have no unified prices. This, according to institutional officials, is because Kosovo does not have an administrative regulation that could regulate the issue. They say that the price larmamania at the drugstore is obvious, and this is because of the free market that exists in Kosovo.

Citizens say they have never encountered the same prices for the same drug in various drugs. Kaltrine Dula, citizen, for Radio Free Europe, says that in Kosovo drugs, prices bury, even with high value. For the same drug in different drugs, the difference is too big.

If you don't frequent some drugs, to look at the price of drugs, you'll probably get it at a high price. The same medicine is found at 3 euros in a pharmacy and with 7 euros in the next drug store, with the same name and producer. Although it's a free market, I think prices would have to be a little more unified, even though they distinguish, not to have such a big difference at the price of”, she says.

Even members of the Association of Kosovo Pharmacists have claimed that price variation destabilises the pharmaceutical market, so, according to them, this issue should be resolved as soon as possible.

The topic of debate has sometimes been the question of buying drugs from the Ministry of Health at a cost of several times that of their real price on the market.

Councilman Albattri Matoshi explains how they will address the matter in the future:

The Ministry of Health is in the process of drafting administrative guidelines for drug prices, with which there will be control over what and how the Ministry of Health will pay. The first draft of administrative instruction has already been completed, and this is made in line with recommendations from the World Health Organization”.

As recent comments arrive, the Health Ministry will also hold final meetings of the working group and hold public discussion with which all relief actors, including the”, will be invited.

The “Synment is to create price control through reference prices from countries in the region, not allowing prices for the same products to be higher than in the region”.

The health sector, especially isolating the drug sector, has resulted in being among the most corrupt, was said last week in anti-corruption, which is supported by the American Embassy in Pristina and the embassies of Quint countries.

Over 20m euros per year are earmarked for the budget needed for medicines and spending material in Kosovo. This budget, according to health officials, is deemed insufficient.

The Health Ministry will make contract management available for medicines and rescue material through an electronic system that has been active since Thursday. The Minister of Health, Ismaili Bridge, has made this known.