Drug prices soar by 30.5% in Turkey after presidential decree

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President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has signed a decree leading to a substantial 30.5% surge in drug prices, as published in the Official Gazette yesterday.

The price hike stems from the adjustment of the Euro exchange rate, used as a benchmark for pricing medicinal products, which has been escalated by 30.5%, now standing at 14.0387 lira (1 US dollar = 26.97 Turkish lira).

As a result of this decision, price-protected medications will see their benchmark value rise to 48.41 lira, while other drugs will have a benchmark value of 25.30 lira.

However, it's important to note that temporary adjustments of up to 4 lira, made under the 7th provision, will not be taken into account during the periodic update of the Euro value.

After this update, any increases up to 4 lira will be added to the wholesale prices of drugs without any alterations to the lira value.

The presidential decree came into effect today, potentially impacting healthcare costs and access to medication for citizens. (HA/VK)