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In a context marked by tensions over the availability of certain medicines, denounced by community pharmacists, the Association of Distributors of Pharmaceutical Products of Algeria (Adpha) defends the integrity of its members and calls for dialogue with all parties concerned. This is what the association indicated in a press release.
Adpha expressed its surprise following the recent press release from the National Union of Pharmacists (Snapo), which issued accusations regarding disruptions in the medicines market and the availability of certain pharmaceutical products, “mainly attributed to distributors”, the association stressed in a press release.
She was keen to point out that “non-compliance with the law by a minority of players should not be attributed to distributors alone”, stating that this also extends to suppliers, manufacturers and pharmacists. The association considered that “we should not make this minority the tree that hides the forest”, ensuring that “there are honest players who have always proven their ability to supply and transport medicines on a national scale, even in the most difficult circumstances, as was the case during the Covid-19 pandemic”.
According to pharmaceutical product distributors, the path of unilateral press releases cannot replace a collective commitment involving all representatives of the levels of the distribution chain, under the aegis of the Ministry of Industry and Pharmaceutical Production, within the framework of the Monitoring Observatory on the availability of pharmaceutical products and its working groups.
She recalls that, over the last two years, close collaboration between the various unions in the sector has been a key driver of progress in many sensitive issues.
However, Adpha expresses its concern about the return to conflictual communication, which it considers counterproductive for the achievement of common objectives and for maintaining the stability that is essential to the sector. While recognizing the legitimate pressure exerted by the union base to obtain rapid solutions to chronic problems, it calls for caution and moderation in public communications so as not to compromise the capital of trust accumulated over years of collaboration.
Stressing the urgent need for a “transparent and responsible dialogue” to resolve the complex challenges of the sector, Adpha notes the importance of close collaboration and a collective approach to ensure the availability of essential medicines to the population,
As a reminder, a week ago, Snapo launched a call for urgent action by the authorities concerned against illegal practices in the distribution of pharmaceutical products and called on pharmacists to boycott the distribution operators responsible for this situation.
The Snapo had denounced “the irresponsible behavior of certain pharmaceutical operators who withhold stock and impose concomitant sales on pharmacists.” According to the Snapo, the drugs most affected are often those in a monopolistic situation, manufactured by a single producer, with the complicity of certain wholesalers.
The union cited, as an example, the case of vitamin D3 which costs 100 DA per box but some distributors force pharmacists to place orders for other pharmaceutical products up to 100,000 DA to obtain only a few boxes. In addition, the Union of Community Pharmacists urged, in its appeal, the supervisory authority to intensify control operations, as well as the need to restructure the Observatory for Monitoring the Availability of Pharmaceutical Products, in order to find effective solutions to resolve the problems.