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Pricing issues for nonprescription medicines
The pricing of nonprescription medicines, or at least those which
are not reimbursed by national social security or health insurance
coverage programs, is not subject to price controls in most countries
around the world. The European Commission has stated on several
occasions that the positive experience with free pricing for manufacturers
of nonprescription medicines should be taken into account even when
discussing prescription medicines and has therefore recommended
to all European Union Member States that they remove price controls
for nonprescription medicines. Given the high level of competition
among nonprescription medicine manufacturers, consumers have been
well-served through a free market in which manufacturers set prices
based on supply and demand.
While recognizing that many governments have some form of price
control or cost-containment measures in place for reimbursed medicines
(be they prescription or nonprescription), WSMI urges governments
to allow manufacturers to set their own prices for nonprescription
medicines which are not reimbursed based on market conditions.
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