ISTANBUL, Nov. 26 (Reuters) – Some Turks struggle to buy drugs as industry warns stocks are dwindling after “unsustainable” lira crash pushed up import prices and disrupted supplies.

Industry leaders and pharmacies have said the 48 billion lire ($ 4 billion) sector faces significant losses on some products, and have warned of disruptions in the coming months for them. medicines, especially those for children, colds, diabetes and high blood pressure.

Already weak, Turkey’s currency has lost as much as 25% since the start of last week due to what analysts are calling reckless interest rate cuts that have caused shortages of some imported goods. Read more

Nezih Barut, chairman of the Turkish Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association, told Reuters that stocks of some drugs had fallen to one week, from the usual one month. Pharmaceutical companies are being forced to limit some suddenly expensive imports due to the weaker currency, he added.

“Some pharmaceuticals are not on the market. This is due to exchange rates and the difficulties we face in accessing raw materials globally,” said Barut.

For a mother, the concerns were acute.

“I have looked everywhere and couldn’t find more, and pharmacies can’t tell me when they’ll get it next,” said the Istanbul nurse looking for medicine for her 16-year-old son. years old with cerebral palsy and epilepsy.

“I have to talk to our doctor and change the medicine if I can’t find it, but I hope we don’t have to,” she said, on condition of anonymity. “We were told it was because of the exchange rate adjustment.”

The latest drop in the pound has exacerbated an existing problem for an industry that imported 24 billion pounds ($ 2 billion) of drugs last year: the Turkish Pharmacists Association said earlier this month that ‘there were already problems accessing 645 drugs.

The pound has fallen 38% against the dollar and 32% against the euro since the start of the year. Sales accelerated this month when the central bank, under pressure from President Tayyip Erdogan, cut rates by another 100 basis points to 15%, well below inflation at 20%.

The currency was firmer Thursday after hitting a record low of 13.45 per dollar on Tuesday. Read more

But the sharp depreciation only fuels Turkish inflation via imports, including drugs.

“Manufacturing or importing pharmaceuticals is not viable at current exchange rates,” said Barut, adding that his association would ask the government for a minimum price increase of 35% for next year due to the rate. exchange rate.

DISTURBANCES

Pharmacists have predicted supply problems until February, when the next annual benchmark price for drugs will be set.

“There will be shortages of many drugs, especially children’s drugs, hormonal drugs, blood pressure drugs, some diabetes drugs, insulin,” said Ayse Sibel Birinci, pharmacist in Ankara.

Ahmet Metin Kablama, another pharmacist, said children’s pain relievers, antipyretics, nasal sprays and cough syrups were especially scarce due to the drop in the pound.

“As there is an epidemic of influenza as well as COVID right now, patients are having difficulty accessing this type of drug,” he said.

Officials say the industry’s difficulties are also due to a benchmark price system in place since 2004.

Under the system, 5 EU countries are taken as benchmarks and the lowest price among them is the “benchmark price” for medicines in Turkey. For competing generic drugs, 60% of the reference price is applied, on the basis of an exchange rate of the euro which is fixed for one year.

The companies say the rate is too low. It was set at around 4.6 per euro for this year, while one euro was worth 13.4 lire on Thursday.

It means delays for some people.

“I needed to buy a vitamin but I was only able to get it after waiting a few days,” said Elif Kucuk, 43, in the town of Erzurum. “The pharmacist said there was none in stock.”

Additional reports by Ezgi Erkoyun, Halilcan Soran and Canan Sevgili; Written by Daren Butler; Editing by Jonathan Spicer and Giles Elgood

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