Argentina's pharmaceuticals market to grow at 17.8% CAGR

The Argentina Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report, from Business Monitor International, calculates Argentina's pharmaceutical expenditure to have been 11.56 billion pesos ($3.73 billion) in 2008. By 2013, the publisher expects the total amount spent on prescription and over-the-counter medicines to have reached a value of 26.62 pesos, equating to a compound annual growth rate of 17.8%.

In US dollar terms, however, as a result of the weakening peso, drug market expenditure will fall sharply from $3.73 billion in 2008 to $3.37 billion in 2009. This will affect all the subsequent forecasts in this report. In BMI's Business Environment Rankings for the fourth quarter of 2009, Argentina is placed in seventh place in the America's region. Globally, Argentina is ranked in 31st position, above Russia and Qatar and just behind Turkey and Colombia.

Nation viewed as in breach of TRIPS, marketing approval system weak

Argentina is present on the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA)'s Special 301 Submission (2009) Priority Watch List owing to the lack of protection of undisclosed test data and other information, in a manner that is inconsistent with its obligations under the World Trade Organization's Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) agreement.

Argentina's reliance on data submitted by originators to approve marketing requests by competitors for similar products - following the approval of the product associated with the original submitted data - is viewed negatively.
The report also criticizes the absence of any link between the patent system and the procedures for approving the marketing of pharmaceutical products, including non-patented medicines.

Negative impact of OTC legislation

In April this year, the College of Pharmacists in Argentina called for the government to change legislation regarding the sale of OTC medicines in the country. The sale of OTC medicines in establishments other than pharmacies was authorized in 1991 by Decree 2284. It was argued that medicines sold on pavements had not been stored in adequate conditions, as they would have been exposed to sunlight. Furthermore, it was revealed that, although the Administration of Medicines, Food and Technology regulates all medicines, it does not have any jurisdiction to inspect medicines sold in street kiosks. It is therefore believed that some of the drugs sold outside pharmacies are counterfeit, and that the reduced regulation regarding OTC medicine sales has led to the sale of prescription medicines outside pharmacies.

The current swine flu outbreak has hit Argentina hard and BMI believes that, if the situation gets worse, the social and economic impact will be immense, leading to a contraction in the country's Gross Domestic Product. While certain drugmakers and medical device manufacturers will profit, all other pharmaceutical companies will see sales decline sharply. Both government and consumer spending will contract, resulting in reduced demand for both prescription and OTC medicines.