NEW COLOMBIA LAW ENCOURAGES GENERICS PRESCRIBING

A new law in Colombia, Decree 2200, is expected to encourage generics prescribing in the country. Under the measure, doctors are obliged to clearly state the active ingredients of a drug on its prescription, but they do not have to state the brand name. This should result in a boost in the up-take of generics. However, the new legislation does not go as far as introducing mandatory generic prescribing.

Another key aspect of Decree 2200 is the establishment of a limit of 75 metres between pharmacy retail outlets. This is designed to curb the proliferation of retail pharmacies in cities, and curb the influence of large pharmacy chains. A similar measure has recently been introduced in Argentina and should be fully enforced in Colombia by the end of 2005. Elsewhere, the government has begun an education programme to warn consumers about the dangers of unregulated, illegal drugs, in an effort to stem the flow of counterfeit medicines in the country, a serious problem not just in Colombia but throughout the region.