President's order to reduce drug prices remains unfulfilled – expert

In February 2025, the President of Ukraine instructed the National Security and Defense Council, the Cabinet of Ministers, and the Ministry of Health to regulate drug pricing and reduce their cost by at least 30%. This task was deemed a priority due to the decline in public income during the war and a significant increase in Ukrainians’ medical expenses. However, after more than six months, there have been no real results. Viktor Serdyuk, Head of the All-Ukrainian Charitable Organization “Council for the Protection of Patients’ Rights and Safety,” wrote about this on his Facebook page, as reported by UNN.

DetailsAccording to the expert’s assessment, voluntary steps by domestic manufacturers were limited to only a hundred of the most popular drugs (“top-100 drugs”), selected based on the number of packages sold. Other medicines remained unnoticed, although they account for the majority of patients’ expenses. Proposals to involve foreign manufacturers and expand selection criteria were never implemented – the discussion process dragged on, and no concrete effective decisions were made.

Unfortunately, proposals remained proposals due to endless discussions. The rest of the medicines remain expensive for the meager budget of an average Ukrainian household, which accounts for a larger share of the pharmaceutical market. This particularly applies to the cost of drugs needed for patients with chronic diseases. Families are still forced to spend excessive budgets on medicines, and this situation causes justified outrage among Ukrainians.

According to Viktor Serdyuk, the situation was complicated by the government’s decision, which, based on the erroneous thesis about “the evil of marketing payments,” banned marketing agreements between pharmacies and manufacturers from March 1, 2025. It was assumed that such a step would reduce drug prices, but in practice, this did not happen – on the contrary, some drugs even became more expensive. The Ministry of Health itself acknowledged this fact.

“When banning marketing, many components were not taken into account, one of which is that these agreements allowed pharmacies to offer discounts on drugs and launch various social initiatives. This error and the discussion within the professional community showed that the return of marketing will contribute to lower drug prices. It seems that even constructive discussions are currently being blocked by certain players in the pharmaceutical market who cannot admit the fallacy of their view on marketing,” Viktor Serdyuk emphasized.

The expert emphasized that the unregulated nature of this issue is one of the reasons why the President’s instruction to reduce drug prices has remained unfulfilled for a long time: the Ministry of Health has not yet prepared the necessary proposals, and the Government, accordingly, cannot introduce effective regulation of the pharmaceutical market.

“The draft resolution that would restore marketing has not yet been submitted to the Cabinet of Ministers; market participants still do not understand when market regulation will become clear and predictable, when marketing will resume and in what form. Accordingly, it is difficult for businesses to plan their work even in the short term, which undoubtedly affects the availability of medicines,” Viktor Serdyuk explained.

In conclusion, Viktor Serdyuk emphasized that patients continue to suffer from the high cost of treatment. In his opinion, clarity and balanced reforms are needed today, taking into account compromises between all market stakeholders.

“The President, the people of Ukraine, are waiting for concrete effective solutions that will truly improve the lives of patients, and if the return of marketing can improve the availability of medicines, this decision must be implemented immediately. Ukrainians certainly deserve a fair and transparent drug pricing system,” he concluded.

 Recall From February 14, 2025, the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine introduced new rules for regulating the pharmaceutical market by Resolution No. 168. According to the resolution, pharmacies were prohibited from entering into marketing agreements with drug manufacturers. Previously, these agreements allowed pharmacies to provide patients with discounts, implement social initiatives, and improve the qualifications of pharmacists.

However, after the introduction of new rules for the pharmaceutical market, analysts recorded an increase in drug prices in Ukraine, despite government initiatives. 

The Ministry of Health also acknowledged this, with Minister Lyashko noting that in April, inflation for pharmaceutical products was 13.9%. And although it did not exceed the overall inflation rate, patients still did not see the expected reduction in drug costs in their receipts.

AddSerhiy Kuzminykh, Head of the Subcommittee on Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Activities of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine Committee on National Health, Medical Care, and Medical Insurance, allegedly fights for lower drug prices and the protection of patients’ rights. The latter builds a public image of a reformer, but behind this facade lie facts of lobbying for large pharmaceutical companies, attempts at illegal influence, and political flexibility in the interests of oligarchic business.