Health Minister: all pharmacies to be required to stock essential medicines

All pharmacies will be obliged to keep a defined range of medicines in stock, Georgian Health Minister Mikheil Sarjveladze has said, stressing that commercial considerations must not determine which pharmaceutical products are available to the public.

“Every pharmacy will have the responsibility to maintain a certain assortment of medicines. Commercial interest should not influence whether a pharmaceutical product is considered profitable or unprofitable to sell,” the Minister stated.

Sarjveladze added pharmacy chains must recognise their role in addressing medicine shortages, which he described as an issue of public policy requiring regulation.

“So-called essential medicines, which are of vital importance, must be available in any pharmacy. We will look at how best to shield citizens from such risks. We will need to introduce optimal mechanisms that, in practice, will rule out these periodic shortages,” he said.

The Minister acknowledged that supply disruptions can sometimes arise for importers or pharmacy chains. While legal mechanisms to mitigate such risks already exist, he noted that further refinement of the system may be necessary to prevent future shortages.