SA’s pharmaceutical policy must strike a balance between medicine affordability and local industry sustainability, argues industry expert Dr Keele. While the 2004 single exit price (SEP) system successfully lowered generic unit prices by boosting transparency and market competition, a narrow fixation on achieving the lowest price poses long-term supply risks.
Data from the industry group Pharmisa reveals that aggressive price-driven procurement has crippled domestic manufacturing. Local producers' share of HIV/AIDS tenders plummeted from 72% in 2008 to 28% in 2025, resulting in over 2,500 job losses and severe medicine shortages.
Reliance on cheap imports threatens health security and weakening local industrial capacity erodes the broader tax base needed to fund public healthcare, said Keel. To ensure reliable access to quality medication, policymakers must transition toward an integrated national strategy that harmonises pricing regulations with industrial development, procurement, and fiscal sustainability. - Business Day (29 September 2026)