Healthy Skepticism Library item: 19204

Warning: This library includes all items relevant to health product marketing that we are aware of regardless of quality. Often we do not agree with all or part of the contents.

Publication type: Magazine

Deceitful pharmacies?
Pharmacy Daily 2011 Feb 22
www.pharmacydaily.com.au

Full text:

PHARMACIES across the nation of Fiji are being branded as deceitful,
after a survey conducted by the Consumer Council of Fiji found a number
of pharmacies selling generics at branded prices.

“From the consumer perspective – because we are not knowledgeable in
that area – we can not differentiate a generic from an originator brand
so when we go to a pharmacy and they say you have to pay $44 you will
just give $44 thinking that that is the price for the drug,” said
Council chief executive Premila Kumar.

“But when we did our analysis we found that in many cases most
pharmacies were selling generic drug BUT they priced it at branded
originator drug price which is more expensive,” she added.

The Price and Practices Survey 2010 also listed further instances of
unscrupulous behaviour which included tax evasion through doctored
receipts.

In response to the findings, Fiji’s Commerce Commission and its Health
Ministry have taken steps to impose a series of set pricing controls on
a number of medicines, whilst the Fijian Pharmacy and Poisons Board has
also issued warning letters to community pharmacies across the nation.

The Board has also launched a raft of investigations into individual
pharmacy breaches.