Drug sales go down 4.4% in Romania

Local drug market reached about EUR 2.7 billion in Romania in the last year (July 2015-June 2016), down 4.4% compared to the period July 2014-June 2015, according to the survey Pharma & Hospital Report by market research company Cegedim. The decrease was related to the 7.5% drop in the value of prescription drugs sold in pharmacies, according to Cegedim, reports local Ziarul Financiar. However, the state’s decision to start covering the costs for the treatment of hepatitis C has prevented the market from going down even more. After the state started paying for hepatitis drugs, the drug market increased by 16% in the second quarter of this year compared to the same period of last year, Cedegim data shows. US company Abbvie ranked first among players in the local drug market in the past year. The company recorded sales of over EUR 209 million between July 2015 and June 2016. Abbvie went up five positions due to the increase in the use of products for the treatment of hepatitis C. It was followed by French group Sanofi, including Zentiva, with total sales of over EUR 183 million. Novartis, including Sandoz, was third with sales of almost EUR 132 million. editor@romania-insider.com