After President Andrés Manuel López Obrador announced that the Mexican government will make a consolidated purchase of medicines abroad in order to address the shortage problem, members of the industry pointed out that these acquisitions will not solve the problem and will seriously harm the sector established in the country.
In a joint statement, the National Chamber of the Pharmaceutical Industry (Canifarma), the Mexican Association of Pharmaceutical Research Industries (Amiif), the National Association of Drug Manufacturers (Anafam) and the Mexican Association of Pharmaceutical Laboratories (Amelaf) stated that With this measure, health sovereignty can be lost, with important consequences for the continuity and supply of patient treatment and the country’s economy. They also asked the Federal Executive to reflect on this decision.
Regarding the problems of availability of medicines and supplies that the National Health System (SNS) faces, they indicated that the supply difficulties in some groups of therapeutic goods are due to the lack of planning and transparency in the processes of the purchasing entities of these inputs in the last year and a half, and not because the industry established in Mexico does not have the capacity to produce them with quality and price.
“For the supply of 2020, only 30 percent of the requirements were tendered, with the remaining 70 percent purchased through direct awards, a purchase alternative that should only be applied for exceptions in the current legal framework,” they stressed.
They recalled that medicines and medical devices are not goods that are freely available in the market, since they have an expiration date that prevents that in Mexico and the world there is the possibility that they can be stored for when they are needed in the systems. of health; For this reason, in order to have them, it is necessary to have, with anticipation and months of planning, contracts that generate certainty of production to prepare the availability that the Mexican population demands.
“In relation to the serious allegations of corruption, the pharmaceutical industry established in Mexico asks the President to settle the responsibilities and sanctions that correspond to violators, joining the fight led by the government of President López Obrador against corruption and ending with impunity ”, they affirmed.
They explained that there is competition in the market that prevents concentrations and there is no place for monopoly. Figures provided by the industry indicate that in Mexico there are 250 plants in the sector that generate 600 thousand direct and indirect jobs.
“The pharmaceutical and medical device industry, by different means and in different instances, has demonstrated and has the commitment, capacity and willingness to contribute to health care policies, acting with transparency and responsibility. We agree with the government in the fight against corruption, but we are also in favor of ending impunity, ”they affirmed.
Necessary, boost for science
According to the IDB, historically Latin America has not invested enough in research and development; There are countries with fragile support for science and some consider financing the sector as a low priority. The pandemic experience should be a “wake-up call” to the importance of financing science and redesigning how it is conceived and supported.
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