Nigerians priced out of healthcare as rising drug costs undermine government relief measures — PSN president

The rising cost of medicines is pushing some Nigerians away from conventional healthcare and towards traditional remedies, President of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN), Pharmacist Ayuba Ibrahim Tanko, has warned. Therefore, he has called for a comprehensive review of government measures aimed at making pharmaceutical products more affordable.

Tanko said efforts to reduce medicine prices would continue to yield limited results unless policymakers addressed the multiple costs associated with pharmaceutical production, including diesel, electricity, transportation, logistics and import tariffs.

Speaking at a media briefing at the PSN building to announce the 99th annual national conference of the association in Lagos, he said the rising cost of medicines was already influencing patients’ healthcare choices, raising concerns about access to conventional treatment.

“Already because of the high cost of medicine, many people are not going to the hospital again. They are taking traditional medicine,” Tanko said.

He added that some people were turning to traditional remedies because of the financial burden of accessing conventional healthcare, although such choices did not necessarily provide comprehensive healthcare.

Flanked at the briefing by Pharmacist Derrick Osondu, Chairman of the Conference Planning Committee, Pharmacist Lizette Ezenekwe and Pharmacist Gafar Madehin, the PSN president argued that government interventions must reflect the realities confronting pharmaceutical manufacturers to translate into lower prices for consumers.

Tanko acknowledged that the government had introduced incentives and other measures intended to reduce medicine prices but said their impact remained limited because pharmaceutical prices were influenced by several interconnected factors.

He explained that a reduction in import tariffs, for instance, might not result in cheaper medicines if the cost of diesel and other essential inputs continued to rise.

He also identified electricity, transportation and logistics as significant cost pressures that manufacturers must consider when determining product prices.

According to him, businesses cannot indefinitely absorb rising operating expenses without passing some of the additional costs on to consumers.

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“If the cost of transportation goes up, no businessman is doing it for charity. Every businessman wants to make profit. So if this factor increases, it will increase its price,” Tanko said.

He warned that addressing one component of production costs while allowing others to rise could undermine the effectiveness of government policies.

Tanko urged the government to consult pharmaceutical industry leaders before introducing measures intended to reduce medicine prices, arguing that policymakers could overlook important cost factors without direct input from manufacturers.