The drugstores that have in stores medications imported before January 1, when the new mechanism for setting prices came into force, are to return them to pharmaceutical storehouses. After the drugs are reassessed, they will be taken back to drugstores, with new prices. The explanations were provided by officials of the Medication Agency in a meeting with representatives of drug importers and suppliers, Info-Prim Neo reports. “We clearly told the pharmaceutical storehouses to adjust the prices to those indicated in the National Catalogue of Prices and inform the drugstores with which they work about the changes. This is the responsibility of the storehouses, not drugstores,” the head of the Medication Agency Maria-Cojocaru Toma said after the meeting. The companies complain that they have to sell the imported drugs at lower prices than the purchase price. Officials of the Medication Agency say yet that the companies were informed beforehand abut the new mechanism for setting the prices of drugs and were warned not to make large stores. Those who ignored the warnings now suffer the consequences. Galina Draganova, the head of a pharmaceutical storehouse, said after the meeting that she now knows better what steps they must take. “Last Friday, they said the reassessment will be carried out by drugstores and by storehouses. Now we were told that the drugstores will not reset the prices. We were familiarized with the new procedures,” she said. The prices included in the National Catalogue of Prices are calculated on the basis of the average of the lowest three producer prices. The profit margin on the sold drugs must not exceed 40% of the Catalogue price. The companies will not obtain authorizations for importing expensive drugs if the same products can be bought from other producers at lower prices.