EL SALVADOR

On September 23, the National Directorate of Medicines (DNM, for its acronym in Spanish) communicated that, as of this year, holders registered with the entity, including manufacturers of oncological drugs, must start reporting the prices of their products for sale to the public in the countries of Central America including Panama, on an annual basis. The information may be submitted until October 23 on the following website. On the other hand, the Ministry of Health released the eighth addendum to the Institutional List of Essential Medicines (LIME, for its acronym in Spanish) of the Ministry of Health (MINSAL, for its acronym in Spanish), which includes Tocilizumab in two of its variants. The measure is already in force.

The DNM explained that manufacturers only need to report information on the prices of those medicines appearing in the system on the account of the registered owner, emphasizing the importance of registering with the system. Manufacturers are advised to check whether their product portfolio includes medicines required to meet this condition. According to the entity, this information will be used to perform the pertinent calculations and revisions to the List of Maximum Prices for the Public Sale of Medicines, and is based on Articles 58 and 78 of the Medicines Law.

The LIME is used by the MINSAL to select, schedule, budget, acquire, inventory and distribute drugs used in the Comprehensive and Integrated Health Networks (RIIS, for its acronym in Spanish). Its addendum includes those drugs selected for emergency care in the context of COVID-19, such as Tocilizumab in two variants: the 163 mg / 0.9 mL Injectable Solution SC format, pre-filled syringe, and the 20 mg / mL Concentrated Solution for infusion, 20 mL vial.