Association of Druggists supports Governmental initiative and separates from League of Independent Drug Stores

The Association of Druggists of Moldova (AFM) declines any affiliation to the League of Independent Drug Stores and detaches itself from League’s declarations regarding passive strike in several drug stores due to the compulsory character of implementing the automated informational system “State list of medicaments”, settled by a Governmental Decision from January 25, 2006. According to a declaration of AFM, signed by its head, Ala Ciobanu, lately in different media sources were presented information on the fact that the pharmaceutical system is close to a disaster, medicaments will increase in price by 70%, many drug stores will be closed and thousands of persons will be dismissed. AFM specifies that “this information is spread by the so-called “League of druggists” and the Association does not agree with these insinuations. At the same time, AFM says that it does not know any information about the legality of League’s founding and activity as professional organization of druggists and the Association declares itself the single NGO of druggists. The authors of the declaration support the intention of the Government to implement the automated informational system “State list of medicaments”, which aims at “ensuring pharmaceutical security of each citizen and of the whole society”. Previously, the League of Independent Drug Stores (LFI) of the Small Business Association solicited several times from the Government to cancel the decision on the implementation of the automated informational system “State list of medicaments”. LFI declared that it will sue this decision, and subsequently, if it will be necessary will forward this case to the European Court for Human Rights. “The labels and the imposed program of JSC “Onix JCV” is a method of obtaining profit with the help of drug stores and a method of market monopolization”, is said in a press release of the League, spread in August 2006. According to the statistics of LFL, 90% of the pharmaceutical necessity of Moldova is covered through import. The prices of the medicaments increased in average by 173%, while the imports decreased by 40% compared with the similar period of 2005.