The Pharmaceutical Society of Ghana (PSGH) has appealed to pharmaceutical business to take urgent steps to reduce the prices of medicines to reflect the Cedi's improved performance.

According to the Society, although the original reason for the high prices of medicines in the country was mainly due to the recent depreciation of the Cedi, it has equally observed that the gradual appreciation of the Cedi has not reflected in prices.

A statement issued by the PSGH, signed by its president Pharm. Samuel Kow Donkoh on Tuesday acknowledged the role of the pharmaceutical business in providing “an important social life-saving benefit.”

The statement said access to medicines and other medical products must therefore be of utmost priority at every point in time for all relevant stakeholders, and called on “all actors of the pharmaceutical supply chain, including manufacturers, importers, wholesalers, suppliers, and retailers to take urgent steps to reduce the prices of medicine to reflect the Cedi's improved performance against the major trading currencies of the world.

“The PSGH further calls on the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA), the Ministry of Health (MOH), and the Ministry of Finance (MOF) to urgently work together to ensure payment of arrears owed providers under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) so that providers in turn can pay their suppliers of pharmaceutical products. We believe this will also contribute further to the reduction in prices of medicines,” the statement said, expressing the hope also that the actions will go a long way to reduce the burden of medical care on Ghanaians.