The period of guaranteed purchase of medicines in Uzbekistan will be increased to 10 years

According to the report of the correspondent of “Gazeta.uz”, the period for guaranteed purchase of pharmaceutical products in Uzbekistan will be extended from January 1, 2024 from the current 3 to 10 years. This is provided for by presidential decree of October 12.

We are talking about a mechanism for guaranteed purchase of pharmaceutical products subject to localization at the expense of the state budget. In addition, this paragraph from the previous decree of 2022 is supplemented by the requirement for positive results of clinical trials, state registration and certification processes

The Commission for the Development of the Pharmaceutical Industry approves a list of international non-proprietary names of substances, medicines (in the absence of these names, the names of the corresponding groups of medicines), medical products and medical equipment not previously produced on the territory of the republic, subject to localization in the future. Previously, this list was compiled by the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Ministry of Investment, Industry and Trade and the Pharmaceutical Industry Development Agency.

This list should be posted and regularly updated on a special government procurement portal.

To sign guaranteed purchase agreements, the winners will be determined through open competitions, in which the Ministry of Health is the state customer and beneficial owner.

Guaranteed purchase of medicines by the state was first discussed in September 2021. We were talking about offset contracts – long-term supply agreements with counter investment obligations. In other words, the investor opens a new production facility in the country, and the country guarantees that it will buy its products for several years. Initially, a period of 5 years was considered, but ultimately a 3-year period was established.

In April 2022, the President instructed to conclude contracts with local manufacturers for the guaranteed purchase of 120 types of in-demand drugs within three years. Then these drugs were purchased from abroad for $300 million. At the first stage, it was planned to allocate 300 billion soums from the budget for guaranteed purchases.