Winning drug bid: Increasing content to push up drug prices

It is worth noting that these drugs have very little competition and are much more expensive than drugs with the same active ingredients, of the same Vietnamese origin, and with normal content on the market.

There is no way to prevent it

A survey by the Vietnam Social Security shows that the price of Cefalexin 350mg of Merap Group Joint Stock Company (VN) that won the bid in Binh Duong province is 1,400 VND/tablet, while the same drug, with a content of 250mg (a common content) produced in Vietnam, also won the bid in Binh Duong province by another pharmaceutical company, is only 470 VND/tablet. Even the Cefalexin 500mg (also a common content) of this pharmaceutical company that won the bid in Binh Duong province is 725 VND/tablet, nearly half cheaper than the new drug with a content of 350mg, of the same Vietnamese origin and also won the bid in Binh Duong province.

Also in this list, the combination drug Cefoperazol + Sulbactam 1.5g + 750mg has a winning bid price including VAT of 99,000 VND/bottle, while the product of another pharmaceutical company with the same combination form, also won the bid in the list but with a content of 1.5g + 1.5g, is almost half cheaper, only 59,000 VND/bottle. The drug Cefotaxim with a content of 1.5g (the only one that won the bid in the list) is priced at 35,000 VND/bottle, while the same active ingredient, with a content of 1g, is only priced at 9,350-25,000 VND/bottle. The drug Ceftazidim with a content of 1.25g won the bid price of 59,000 VND/bottle, while the Ceftazidim with a content of 1g, also of Vietnamese origin, in the same winning bid category, is only priced at 30,000 VND/bottle...

According to Associate Professor, Dr. Le Van Truyen - former Deputy Minister of Health, former Chairman of the Vietnam Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, according to the national pharmacopoeia, the content of Cefalexin antibiotics tablets and capsules includes 250mg, 500mg, 1g; and Ceftazidim bottles 250mg, 500mg, 1g, 2g, 6g. But recently, we have seen Cefalexin tablets 350mg, 700mg, Ceftazidim bottles 1.25g... A pharmaceutical expert of Vietnam Social Security said that in theory, it is possible to produce drugs with any content, but the important thing is the price. It is difficult to accept that the content is only slightly higher but the price is many times higher. "Maybe this is a way for businesses to avoid creating a monopoly" - this person assessed.

Surveying the first five localities to complete bidding under the new Circular 01, the Drug Administration has just announced that compared to 2012, the similar bidding package in 2013 has reduced the cost of purchasing drugs by up to 28-57 billion VND. However, according to Mr. Vu Xuan Hien, head of the Department of Pharmaceuticals and Medical Supplies (Vietnam Social Security), there is a trend of drugs with unusual content appearing, with content 1-2 times higher than normal but the price is more than three times higher. "We have discussed with the Drug Administration about this phenomenon, but currently there are no measures to prevent it" - Mr. Hien said.

Concerns about Chinese medicine

Authorities are also concerned about the trend of "Chineseization of the drug market". Under the new regulations, drugs that meet technical standards will participate in the auction of each product, but when bidding on price, many Chinese drugs won the bid because the price was very cheap. For example, the winning bid of Binh Duong province includes Ceftriaxone 1g from Qilu (China); the winning bid of Hai Phong includes Conxime 0.75g from Shandong Hualu (China), Biloxim 1.5g from Shijiahuang (China), Cefuroxim powder vial from Shenzhen Zhijum (China) won the bid; the list of Thua Thien - Hue includes Tinidazol from Sichuan Kelun (China), Ampicilne + Sulbactam from Shandong (China) won the bid...

“We are very concerned because even motorbikes, clothes, fruits, and even ginger from China have been found to be toxic, although they are all very beautiful, shiny, and cheap on the outside. If cheap drugs are used and the treatment time is prolonged, the damage will be much greater than the drug price issue,” said an expert from Vietnam Social Security.

Currently, Vietnam Social Security is compiling a list of Chinese drugs that have recently won bids, examining the extent of this trend and quickly proposing appropriate management measures.