Cost Containment Through Pharmaceutical Procurement: A Caribbean Case Study

“Price Management” and Its Impact on Hospital Pharmaceutical Expenditure and the Availability of Medicines in New Zealand Hospitals

“…These were overcome with the help of the hospital pharmacists in calculating the projected savings and providing annual pharmaceutical expenditure data. In examining the impact of both price decreases and increases among that group of medicines, the Top 150 analysis differed from previous studies that examined only the impact of price decreases on the items subject to new contracts [18,33].…”

Current status of medicines procurement

“…[6][7][8] Studies have shown that procurement is one of the areas most prone to corruption in the health sector. 9,10 The high market value of medicines contributes to this.…”

“…11 Though common in many regions around the world, the lack of strong regulatory authority or an inability to enforce regulations, low staff remunerations, poor procedures, and inadequate payment practices predispose developing countries to higher risks of corruption. 7,12 It is estimated that in some countries, up to two thirds of all hospital medicines are "lost" through poor procurement practices, including corruption and fraud. 6,8 In addition to drug loss, corruption can lead to unsafe medical products entering the hospital with potentially serious health consequences.…”

“…Even in wealthier countries, increasing drug expenditures 14,15 and good business ethics dictate that the procurement of medicines receives special attention 7,18 and national policies and regulations. 27,30 It is therefore important to understand the national and local situation and to select a model that is appropriate for the hospital or the context.…”

Regional group purchasing of vaccines: review of the Pan American Health Organization EPI revolving fund and the Gulf Cooperation Council group purchasing program

“…There have been several efforts over the years to develop group purchasing schemes for pharmaceuticals in different regions. Some have met with considerable success, notably the Eastern Caribbean Drug Service (ECDS), which involves nine small island countries purchasing all their public sector pharmaceutical needs as a group (Huff-Rousselle and Burnett, 1996). Others, such as a program among Maghrebian countries in North Africa and the ACAME program in West Africa for the purchase of generic essential drugs, have had difficulties getting established or have seen a decline in membership (Clark and Moore, 2000).…”