REGARDING THE PROCUREMENT OF MEDICINES THROUGH SK-PHARMACY LLP

In connection with the resonance in the media and social networks on the topic of SK-Pharmacy procuring medicines from domestic manufacturers, we would like report the following.

The concluded contract for the procurement of anticancer drugs from the Karaganda Pharmaceutical Complex LLP domestic manufacturer was carried out by the Almaty Cancer Center independently.

SK-Pharmacy is neither the customer nor the organizer of this tender.

Procurement of medicines through SK-Pharmacy LLP

The procurement of medicines through SK-Pharmacy is legally enshrined and regulated by the Rules for organizing and conducting procurement, approved by Government Decree No. 375 – www.adilet.zan.kz.

According to the Rules, SK-Pharmacy makes procurement on the basis of the List of medicines within the framework of the guaranteed volume of medical care and in the compulsory health insurance system, approved by order of the Ministry of Health of the Republic of Kazakhstan No. KR DSM-88 - www.adilet.zan.kz, which contains: characteristics of medicines and international non-proprietary name.

In accordance with Rule No. 375, the procurement of all drugs is carried out in four ways:

•   Direct contracts with foreign manufacturers;

•   Procurement through International organizations established by the UN (UNICEF, UNDP, STOP TB);

• Long-term contract with domestic producers;

• Tender through the procurement web portal.

Regarding the procurement of original medicines from manufacturing plants

According to the current legislation - www.adilet.zan.kz, only non-analogue (original) drugs are procured without intermediaries directly from the manufacturers.

Non-analogue medicines include medicines that have no registered analogues in Kazakhstan under the international non-proprietary name, with a certain dosage form, dosage and (or) concentration. These items are procured directly from manufacturers.

In addition, procurement is made directly from factories for the category of diseases for which the use of specific trade names is provided, for example, for such nosologies as conditions after organ and tissue transplantation, HIV (AIDS), orphan diseases, etc.

To provide medical care to the population of the country with oncological diseases for 2022, SK-Pharmacy procured 116 antitumor drugs, of which about 50% are original drugs.

Regarding the procurement of the drug Bevacizumab

In the List of SK-Pharmacy, the drug with the international non-proprietary name "Bevacizumab" is included in the dosage form of a concentrate for the preparation of a solution for infusion in 2 dosages of 100 mg / 4 ml and 400 mg / 16 ml.

In the period from 2013 to 2019, Bevacizumab was procured from F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd., Switzerland under the trade name Avastin.

Since 2020, this drug has been procured domestically from the Karaganda Pharmaceutical Complex under the trade name Bevacizumab.

At the same time, the price of the drug from a domestic manufacturer is lower than the price of the Avastin drug procured in 2017-2019. (100 mg/4 ml dose is 24.4% lower, 400 mg/16 ml dose is 11.3% lower).

The use of generics and biosimilars is a global practice that makes it possible to increase the availability of medicines to reach a larger population. A generic drug contains the same active substance as the original one, but may differ in excipients, drug form, production technology, etc. Even now, in such prosperous countries as the United States or Sweden, generics are bought more often than originals.

It should be noted that before a drug or medical product enters the market in Kazakhstan and appears in a medical organization, pharmacy, to provide citizens of the country as part of outpatient drug provision or retail sales, it is required to go through the procedures for their state registration.

State registration of medicines is a set of measures aimed at verifying safety, quality and effectiveness. Also, during registration, the results of clinical and preclinical trials, compliance with international standards are evaluated. The main goal of the procedure is to provide the population of the country with safe, effective, high-quality medicines and medical devices.

Reference:

The architecture of the stages of the drug supply system can be found in the material at the link - https://sk-pharmacy.kz/rus/press-centr/smi_o_nas/ot-proizvodstva-do-paczienta-sistema-lekarstvennogo-obespecheniya.

The information about the pricing of medicines can be found in the material at the link. - https://sk-pharmacy.kz/rus/press-centr/smi_o_nas/sk-farmacziya-ne-zakupaet-medikamentyi-dlya-chastnyix-aptek