A drugstore in Ho Chi Minh City. The costs of many medicines have increased by up to 30 percent recently.

The price of some medicines have increased by up to 30 percent recently despite the drop in the prices of fuel and other commodities, a recent survey of medicine traders by Thanh Nien in Ho Chi Minh City found.

The retail price of these drugs will be between 7 and 10 percent higher.

The prices of some domestic traditional medicines have also increased by between 20 - 36 percent.

According to many wholesalers, medicine prices have increased during the past two weeks, with some imported drugs rising by 10 to 8 percent, and traditional medicines by 15 - 30 percent.

Head of the Health Ministry’s Drug Administration, Truong Quoc Cuong, said the recent increase in medicine prices was acceptable, based on approvals made in July and August.

“Actually, the medicine prices weren’t allowed to rise during the increase in other products,” he said, referring to a decision to control the prices from March to June this year.

“When the medicine price was controlled, many companies had to face several difficulties from high interest rates, delayed payment from medical centers and increased market prices while they had to follow contracted prices,” he said.

Cuong also said the administration had received requests to increase prices on 1,223 imported medicines from 93 pharmaceutical companies since July, of which increases to 247 medicines were approved.

The approved ones accounted for 1.23 percent of medicines in the market with an average increase rate of 6.51 percent, he said.

Cuong said the provincial health departments would be in charge of controlling domestic medicine prices.

However, Cuong said he expected medicine prices to be more stable than in the recent past, because of lower interest rates and US dollar values, compared to earlier this year.

Reported by Thanh Tung – Lien Chau