SAWT BEIRUT INTERNATIONAL

| 29 March 2024, Friday |

Sukkarieh criticizes drug price list’s “massacre”

Head of the National Health Authority – “Health is a Right and Dignity”- Dr. Ismail Sukkarieh, criticized in a statement today, “the massacre of the medicines’ price list announced by the Ministry of Public Health, as people cannot afford it.”

He was also surprised by “the ministry’s acquiescence to Banque du Liban  Governor’s decision, who calculated the dollar at the price of 12,000 pounds, so drug prices soared much more than the citizen’s abilities, as it increased between four and six times, which will make most patients buy medicine with the number of pills, after their inability to pay the price of a whole box.”

He said: “This is how the promises of rationalizing support were translated after nine months of media marketing, just like the months of assignment that were wasted without forming a government, what is common, is wasting more time and causing more collapses. Now it has become clear, the reasons for hiding medicines in stores, and exporting some abroad. what we are witnessing a price massacre in pharmacies, and this is what we expected and warned of repeatedly, as we warned against the maneuvers of Banque du Liban Governor, and failure of those responsible of confronting him, especially the Ministry of Health, the Pharmacists Syndicate and the Parliamentary Health Committee.