MOSCOW, September 7. /TASS/. Russia will not introduce a ban on foreign medicines and medical equipment, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday at the forum of the All-Russia People’s Front dedicated to the healthcare sector.
"We have never said, we are not saying and we will not say that we will ban any foreign-made medicines or foreign-made equipment. No way!" Putin told the forum in downtown Moscow.
The Russian leader stressed the need to develop the production in the country "so that we have not only competitive generics but also develop and introduce our own formulas."
The president noted that excellent specialists and the whole scientific teams now work at many Russian pharmaceutical enterprises and are able to "suggest these newest formulas and expand the list of medicines that we will produce in Russia."
Putin stressed that there is a need to "invest funds in the development of the national pharmaceutical industry." The state has launched this program but the problem will not be solved without the participation of businesses and the specialized community, he said.
"These federal funds are only for creating conditions and pushing the development of this business," the president said.
Putin regularly attends forums and conferences of the All-Russia People’s Front, whose establishment he initiated in 2011. Thus, in spring 2015, Putin spoke in St. Petersburg at an ONF media forum, and last November he spoke at another forum in Moscow.
Russia should localize 90% of medicines by 2018
According to the president, Russia should localize the production of 90% of medicines by 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a forum of the All-Russia People’s Front (ONF) on Monday.
"We plan to attain such a state of the country’s pharmaceutical industry in which 90% of medicines that are now used in Russia would be localized in the Russian Federation," Putin said.
The president said that the task is to develop the production of not only finished pharmaceutical products, but also medicinal substances in Russia. "We should urge our colleagues engaged in this business with profit rates higher than in some criminal spheres known as highly profitable, to invest money in the national pharmaceutical industry," Putin said.
Putin also urged to "find a clue" to solving the issue of reducing the number of non-prescription medicines and the issue of a possible ban on advertising medicines. The proposal on cutting the list of non-prescription medicines and banning advertising of pharmaceuticals has been voiced by ONF representatives during the meeting with the president.
"The question is how to find the right clue to promoting the products without red-taping these decisions. For instance, our colleague, a businessman from the pharmaceutical industry has proposed to increase, in fact, the number of prescription pharmaceuticals. But we know the current problems of our out-patient hospitals in which patients are still queuing up," Putin said. According to him, "we should strike a happy medium" in this issue.
"I would really like to see your final recommendations to the assignments, I’m just asking for your help in this regard. I would like the interested professionally trained people to make qualitative proposals that we would be able to put into practice," the president said.