1

MDG Target 8.E gap analysis

Dr Hans Hogerzeil

Director, Department of Essential Medicines and Pharmaceutical Policies,

World Health Organization

October 2008

2

Target 8.E: In cooperation with pharmaceutical companies, provide access to affordable essential

drugs in developing countries

Indicator 8.13. Proportion of Population with Access to Affordable, Essential Drugs on a Sustainable Basis

Access to medicines in the MDGs

3

9 indicators proposed by WHO for measurement of access to medicines

• Access to essential medicines/technologies as part of the fulfilment of the right to health, recognized in the constitution or national legislation.

• Existence and year of last update of a published national medicines policy.

• Existence and year of last update of a published national list of essential medicines.

• Legal provisions to allow/encourage generic substitution in the private sector.

• Public and private per capita expenditure on medicines.• Percentage of population covered by health insurance. • Average availability of 30 selected essential medicines in public and

private health facilities • Median consumer price ratio of 30 selected essential medicines in

public and private health facilities • Margin or mark-up (in per cent) between producer and consumer price

4

Key findings

Recognition of essential medicines in national constitutions• Health is a fundamental human right recognized in at least 135 national

constitutions. However, only five countries specifically recognize access to essential medicines/technologies as part of the fulfilment of the right to health.

Recently updated National Medicines Policies• Worldwide, 71 per cent of countries have a published national

medicines policy. However, only 48 per cent of developing countries have updated their policy in the past 5 years, compared to 86 per cent of developed countries.

Recently updated National Essential Medicines List• Nearly all (95%) developing countries have a published national EML,

and of these 86 per cent have been updated in the past 5 years.

5

Key findings - Availability of essential medicines

• Average availability was only 34.9% in the public sector and 63.2% in the private sector.

• Public sector availability of medicines is consistently lower than in the private sector.

6

Key findings - Price of essential medicines

• Lowest-priced generic medicines cost 6.4 and 2.5 times international reference prices (IRPs) in the private and public sectors, respectively.

• Add-on costs in the supply chain can more than double medicine prices in the private sector. Public sector mark-ups can also be substantial.

7

Key findings – cont'dGeneric substitution policies• About 72% of developing countries have legal provisions to allow or encourage

such generic substitution in the private sector.

Public expenditure on medicines• There is wide variation in national per capita spending on medicines by the

public sector, ranging from US $0.04 to $187.30 among developing countries.

8

Availability of Artemether/lumefantrine 20/120 mg in Kenya

3 4

91

7276

86 86

31

36

5861

68

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Apr-06 Jul-06 Oct-06 Jan-07

% a

va

ila

bil

ity

public sector facilities

private sector facilities

mission sector facilities

Global Fund grant start date (02/2006)

Increased financial support and differential pricing can have a dramatic impact on

medicine availability

9

Recommendations for accelerated progress – national level

• Eliminate taxes and duties on essential medicines• Update national policy on medicines• Update national list of essential medicines• Adopt generic substitution policies for essential

medicines• Transparent and reduced mark-ups on essential

medicines• Increase availability of medicines in the public sector• Routine monitoring of medicine prices and availability

10

Recommendations for accelerated progress – global level

• Differential pricing by pharmaceutical companies to reduce prices of essential medicines in developing countries where generic equivalents are not available.

• Increase promotion of generic medicines and remove barriers to uptake.

• Increase funding for R&D in areas relevant to developing countries including children's dosage forms and most neglected diseases.

11

For full report, access to data and other information

http://www.who.int/medicines/mdg/en/index.html