The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

Pharmaceutical drug prices may go up by 4 percent this summer due to a combination of increased global demand and rising supply chain costs, it was revealed yesterday.

Shantia McBride, the Bahamas Pharmaceutical Association’s (BPA) president, told Tribune Business that consumers needed to brace for increases in prescription medication costs although the extent of any increase remains uncertain. January’s reimposition of 10 percent VAT is another factor that will impact pricing.

Explaining that supply chain backlogs have impacted how much pharmaceutical producers can distribute, she said: “There has been a lull in terms of how many items distributors could ship at a time.

“Freight costs increased. The raw materials to now make these products have increased. Manufacturers’ production costs and freight, all those costs have increased. So now to get it to The Bahamas, the cost might not have reached pharmacies as yet based on their ordering patterns with wholesalers, but we feel eventually it may reach us to a point where, with the increase of VAT on medication to 10 percent, it would be an increase to some medications.”

Ms McBride said she did not want to be held to predictions of a 4 percent increase in the price of prescription medications by this summer. “I may not predict more than a 3 percent to 4 percent increase,” she added.

“I don’t want to stick by a number, but any increase right now economically is going to be felt by our patients, and by the Bahamian economy, because adding 3 percent and then 10 percent with VAT, that is an increase. VAT just increased on January 1, so we’re only a month into that.

“So, any extra increase pharmaceutically within pharmacy, we will definitely advise our patients to maintain their medication, and how to go about finding ways to afford their medication.”

Ms McBride said over-the-counter medication prices had stabilised after seeing an initial increase when manufacturers failed to ensure output kept pace with demand. “Within the pharmaceutical market, what I can say that has been noted initially is increasing prices for over-the-counter drugs. That was based on supply and demand due to COVID-19,” she added.

“So we know COVID-19 increased the need for cold, flu and fever medications. All of the over-the-counter items you would need for COVID-19 related ailments, those items initially went up” until supply caught up with demand.

Despite the inflationary headwinds, Ms McBride said she does not advocate for consumers to buy generic medications. She said: “I would not push for generic drugs. I would speak to the patient and speak to the physician, and see if generic medication may be another option for the patient.

“There are some timeframes when the brand medication is necessary, and the brand is what is needed, and there are some times when there is no generic available. So there’s not always a time where you just swap for generic, and this still has to be done through consultation between patient and physician.”