Concerns Over Rising Medicine Prices In Mexico

Despite public complaints to local health authorities and consumer protection groups, prices of medicines in Mexico have shown a steady upward spiral, ranging around 50% and in some cases even higher over the past half year. Neither the Federal Consumer Office nor the Ministry of Commerce, as well as private consumer organizations have been able to arrest the cost of drugs, including prescription medicines and patent products, reports the Marketletter's local correspondent.

Affected by the increases are said to be the poor, including salaried workers faced with minimum pay increases for unskilled members of the country's labor pool. Their last pay rise was a meagre 4% as the government exploits labor in its preoccupation with maintaining low inflation figures, despite rising prices for everything from food to medical attention by private doctors and hospitals.

Consumer organizations are preparing protests to be submitted to the new federal government now headed by newly-elected President Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de Leon, who took office December 1. The argument being presented is that necessary measures must be instituted to protect the population from excessive increases.