I STRONGLY urge Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim to look into the cost of medicine nationwide.

Medicine is important to ensure the wellbeing of all Malaysians. However, if prices rise beyond the ability of the ordinary Malaysian to afford, many will end up having to exhaust their hard-earned savings.

In an article dated July 27, 2006, which I wrote for Bernama, a survey carried out by university lecturer Zaheer Ud-Din Babar showed “the price of medicines in Malaysia is much higher than even in developed countries”.

That was back in 2006. Ever since then, prices have never gone down.

What is the use of giving the senior citizens special discounts on public transport services and cost of living allowances, but the cost of medicine is still high?

Even when medicines are obtained from public hospitals, the government of the day still has to bear the cost of dispensing medicines at subsidised prices.

At the end of the day, who is benefiting and why has nothing been done since Zaheer’s research was first brought to public’s attention?

According to Zaheer, in the private retail pharmacies, prices of branded medicines “could be as high as 16 times the international reference price (IRP) and 10 times for generic drugs”.

Based on the survey, conducted by two universities covering four major conurbations – Penang, Johor Baru, Kota Baru and Kuala Lumpur – the median price ratio (MPR) of generic drugs is still about six times that of the IRP.

In countries such as Sri Lanka and India, the MPR of generic drugs is lower than two times that of the IRP, but in Malaysia, our MPR is twice that of IRP. 

Patented medicines are expensive, especially when there are no generic alternatives. The report also showed that public hospitals are not spared the cost.

For example, the innovator brand Fluoxetine, which is used for treating depression, the highest MPR is 31.06 that of the IRP, while the antibiotic Ciprofloxacin has an MPR of 111.63 times the IRP in retail pharmacies.

Back in 2006, former health minister Dr Chua Soi Lek said that his ministry would regulate and monitor the prices of medicines used for the treatment of hypertension, diabetes and flu.

However, this problem extends beyond just these three types of medicine.

In my former constituency, the family of a stateless girl suffering from systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), whom I know, had to fork out RM800 every month for medicine and blood tests. Her father is just a small-time plumbing and electrical subcontractor.

Therefore, I urge the prime minister to once again take a serious look at medicine prices in Madani Malaysia. – February 12, 2023.

* Stephen Ng reads The Malaysian Insight.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.