Profiteering behind lack of vaccines and medicines says Corfu Pharmaceutical Association secretary
Pharmaceutical Association
31 Jan 2021
/ 11:12
CORFU. Association secretary Pericles Rarakos paints a grim picture in his statement to local media regarding the availability of vaccines and medicines in general on the island.
"It is a matter of great concern and anger that, according to the EOF (National Organisation for Medicines) list, there is officially insufficiency in over 120 medicines and unofficially over 300 are not available in pharmacies and consequently to the Greek public. This includes pneumococcal vaccines as well as children's vaccines."
Mr. Rarakos goes on to give his explanation: "In Greece medicines are extremely cheap and there is very little profit and thus it is not in the companies' interests to sell them here. Secondly, it is not in the interest of pharmaceutical warehouses to supply all their quantities to pharmacies but rather to export to other countries to make more profit."
"In the first years of the crisis pharmacists made clear their view that medicines should not be part of the free market with price liberalisation as this has failed repeatedly."
Mr. Rarakos goes on to give his explanation: "In Greece medicines are extremely cheap and there is very little profit and thus it is not in the companies' interests to sell them here. Secondly, it is not in the interest of pharmaceutical warehouses to supply all their quantities to pharmacies but rather to export to other countries to make more profit."
"In the first years of the crisis pharmacists made clear their view that medicines should not be part of the free market with price liberalisation as this has failed repeatedly."
