The federal executive council (FEC) has sanctioned the establishment of MediPool, a purchasing organisation to lower drug prices in the country.
The development was announced by the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Professor Ali Pate.
The move was part of the decisions reached at the Federal Executive Council meeting chaired by President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja, on Monday.
Pate stated that MediPool will offer competitive pricing and supply essential medicines and healthcare products across Nigeria.
He added that MediPool will operate as a public-private partnership, leveraging the federal government’s significant purchasing power to negotiate better prices from suppliers.
Pate further shared that the initiative will be established through the federal government’s basic healthcare provision fund and eventually through federal tertiary hospitals.
“So it’s using the monopsony power of government as a large buyer of those commodities to negotiate lower prices and then channel those commodities,” he said.
“The scope includes procurement planning, distribution monitoring, supply chain, logistics management, quality assurance, regulatory compliance, as well as ensuring that local manufacturers are supported.
“It also covers import substitution, financial management and payment systems, capacity building and training, and contingency planning to ensure steady availability of essential drugs through public-private partnership.
“We believe that this is a major intervention that will shape the domestic market, so that the demand for quality pharmaceuticals can be channelled in a way that lowers cost and also improves quality and stimulates local manufacturing.
“It’s not limited to Nigeria. As you may be aware, even countries as far as the United States are placing executive orders to reduce the cost of pharmaceuticals.” Pate said,