South Africa's Health Minister, Nkosazana Zuma, has committed herself tobringing down the cost of drugs in the country, according to a report in the SA Saturday Post, released by the Xinhua news agency. Legislation to cut the cost of drugs in being checked by state law advisors, and Ms Zuma intends to put this to parliament this year.
Statistics from the Department of Health show that some medicines sell in SA for up to 4,000% above the world average. These alleged "over-expensive" medicines include drugs to treat tapeworm infestations and antihypertensives.
The price of some malaria prophylatics is said to be 880% above the world average, while drugs to treat bilharzia, which is endemic in some parts of the country, cost about 1,575% more than the world average, the official survey found.
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