Slow Growth For OTCs In Belgium
Sales of self-medication products in Belgium, including prescription sales of semiethical products, rose only 3% by volume last year, growing 6% by value to reach total sales of 15 billion Belgian francs ($478 million), according to a review of the year published this month in OTC News and Market Report.
The purely non-prescription share of the market showed volume growth of 4% and advanced 8% by value to reach 10.8 billion francs ($344 million), it adds.
Reasons for this slow growth, according to the report, include financial problems for the country's many pharmacies (5,250 covering a population of 10 million) as a result of competition and government reforms reducing sales of prescription drugs, plus a lack of consumer support for switching to over-the-counter products, and reluctance on the part of manufacturers towards dereimbursement.
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