“The three-day meeting will talk about strengthening coordination and unifying stances on drug pricing, health-care quality and patient safety,” said Towfiq A. Khoja, director-general of the GCC Health Ministerial Council in his opening speech at the meeting.
“Smoking, swine flu and malaria are some of the other specific health issues and related risks that the ministers will tackle,” said Khoja, while adding that the talks on the cost of medicines were expected to focus especially on bringing down the prices through a more unified policy. A surge in population, increase in life expectancy and high expectations of patients are creating enormous challenges for the health- care sectors in the region, said the director general, while referring to the need for a multidisciplinary approach to health care.
“There was also a need to address issues such as the lack of health care programs for adolescents, financing the increasing cost of health care and the dependence on expatriates in this critical sector,” said another GCC official, while speaking on the occasion.
He said that cases of cancer were increasing and noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes, obesity afflict 60 percent of the population in the Gulf region. In Saudi Arabia, 29 percent suffer from high blood sugar, he added.
“Every fourth person is a diabetic,” said the GCC official.
The official reiterated that the health-care systems in the region must be strengthened to meet the challenges. He said that the GCC states have to move fast and conduct research, and train and educate health-care providers. As GCC health ministers begin their conclave, pharmacists here expect their focus would be on simplifying registration procedures for drug firms.
Adel Talal, a local pharmacist, said that the GCC should encourage group purchases of medicines by private health-care providers as well bring down the prices of medicines. GCC states have for years been following group purchase policies for medicines for government healthcare facilities, but private medical centers do not enjoy this privilege, according to Talal.