Albania imports medicine worth All 11 billion

TIRANA, June 5 – Albanians are using increasingly more medicines to stay healthy. According to data from Albanian Center for International Trade, Albania last year imported medicines worth ALL 11 billion, or 22 percent more than in 2006. In 2006, Albania imported 20 percent more medicines than in 2005. The Albanian Department of Public Health calculates that Albanians annually buy medicines worth around ALL 17 billion (Euro 140 million). Albanian citizens spends ALL 5,000 to buy medicines every year.
The state budget is allocating increasingly more money each year for health and medicines. This year, the Albanian government is planning to spend around ALL 24.5 billion to finance the public health service. It used, in 2006, ALL 22.5 billion and just ALL 9.4 billion in 2005.
The World Bank calculates that, in Albania, between 23 and 32 percent of expenses for health care are used to pay for medicines. USA and member states of the European Union use only 14 percent of their total health expenses to pay for medicines. According to the World Bank report, the Albanians are predisposed to use more medicines and heavier doses than the Europeans. For the same illness, a prescription in European Union contains one or two medicines, but in Albania, three and probably even four medicines are prescribed.
A large part of the expense for medicines are reimbursed by the Albanian state through the Institute of Health Insurance and Medical Care. Last year, the Albanian government reimbursed 24 percent of total expenses for medicines. This year, the government has planned to use ALL 4 billion for the same reason. Probably, it would be forced to allocate new funds for this reason because, only during the first quarter of 2008, the government has used ALL 1.38 billion.