Drug prices

Drug prices

From Bisnis Indonesia

An acquaintance of mine, living in an urban village on the outskirts of Jakarta, consulted a traditional healer to cure his child's swollen eye instead of going to see an eye specialist. Many people living in poverty cannot afford to pay medical fees, including public health clinic charges.

Meanwhile, the government has raised the price of generic drugs. The Minister of Health said the decision had to be made in response to the request of drug producers. However, only the price of essential drugs has increased by 50 percent.

Of the 232 kinds of drugs, 153 belong to the essential category, while these essential medicines are in fact what the poor people need most.

It is apparent that the government is unwilling to sacrifice its interests for the public at large. The government should not wait until deaths are reported among the poor as the high drug prices are beyond their reach. It is naive to comply with producers' request while ignoring the majority.

TAUFIK KARMADI Jakarta