Russian government to provide additional benefits to domestic drugmakers

The Russian government has approved a package of measures aimed at ensuring regular supplies of drugs and avoiding their shortages in the domestic market this year, according to recent statements by an official spokesman of state press-service and some local media, reports The Pharma Letter’s local correspondent.

Among these measures are zeroing of import duties, introducing a “green corridor” for the supplies of some of vital drugs, and abolishing the “third excess” rule during state tenders. In addition, the government plans to conduct regular checks of the availability of drugs in the domestic pharmacies.

With regard to “third excess,” the rule limiting the participation of foreign drugmaker during state tenders in Russia, was introduced a couple of years ago and resulted in the increase of the share of domestic pharmaceutical producers in the local market.