Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) — Starting from 1 April 2025, Uzbekistan will abolish the price restrictions on medical devices and over-the-counter medicines that have been in place since 2017.

This decision was made through a presidential decree issued on 28 January.

When these restrictions were introduced in 2017, a maximum markup was set at 15% for wholesale trade and 20% for retail trade, based on the base cost and purchase price, respectively.

In 2020, a reference pricing system was introduced for drug price registration. The system involves comparing the manufacturer’s prices in their home country and other markets. Based on this comparison, the government regulator can set threshold market prices and prohibit sellers from exceeding them.

These restrictions will remain in place only for prescription medications. For wholesale and retail sales of such drugs, the markup will not exceed 15% for wholesalers and 20% for pharmacies, regardless of the number of intermediaries. Wholesale and retail prices for prescription drugs will not exceed the established reference prices.

Under the new rules, manufacturers producing the same drug under different brand names must set a single minimum reference price for all variations, unless the active ingredient’s manufacturer differs. This means that producers will not be able to inflate prices for some brands and reduce them for others.

Additionally, the Pharmaceutical Safety Center of the Ministry of Health will automatically review reference prices for medicines in foreign currency if the exchange rate changes.

This review will be conducted without any application from entrepreneurs. If the exchange rate increases by 3%, the review will take place twice a year, in January and July. If the exchange rate rises by 5%, the price review will be conducted earlier.