The government examined on Wednesday, during its meeting held via videoconference under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerad, a draft executive decree setting the modalities for establishing the list of essential medicines, said a statement from the Prime Minister’s office.
This draft text, presented by the Minister for the Pharmaceutical Industry, is part of the application of the provisions of Article 217 of Law 18-11 on Health. It determines the applicable rules for the setting of the essential medicines list in line with the international concept of essential medicines list, as recommended by World Health Organization (WHO), explains the same source.
The draft decree provides provisions taking into consideration the national pharmaceutical production and specific provisions concerning modalities of registration of innovative products on the list of essential medicines, which is set according to a systematic and transparent process defined for the rational selection of essential medicines.
It provides for a multidisciplinary expert committee to review, evaluate and issue an opinion on the list of essential medicines, the statement added.
At the same meeting, the government heard a presentation by the Minister for Pharmaceutical Industry on the recommendations of the forum “The Pharmaceutical Industry: Strategy and Challenges”.
Among the recommendations made during the event was the need to reduce the import bill for pharmaceutical products and the establishment of a committee of expert clinicians to ensure the selection of essential medicines and medical devices.
On this subject, the Prime Minister indicated that the recommendations resulting from this meeting must be implemented in concrete operational measures according to a pre-established timetable in order to promptly achieve the set objectives, indicated the press release.
