Competition Committee uncovers massive price violations in pharmacies across Uzbekistan

Using the Fair Tech information system, the committee identified 107,773 cases of pharmacies receiving excessive payments. These violations occurred across 878 pharmacies, including 295 wholesale and 583 retail outlets. The total amount of overcharges reached more than 7 billion UZS, the committee revealed.

Among these cases, 405 pharmacies were responsible for over 58,000 instances of price hikes on medicines. In response, the committee-initiated measures to restore consumers' rights by ensuring the reimbursement of nearly 2 billion UZS.

Additionally, the watchdog received over 800 complaints directly from citizens about inflated medicine prices. These complaints led to consumer reimbursements totaling almost UZS 100 million.

As of late August, the committee reported that 473 pharmacies exceeded reference prices for medicines, resulting in unjustified revenue of 5.4 billion UZS. Over a third of this figure was attributed to pharmaceutical establishments in the capital city, Tashkent.

The committee also flagged irregularities in the dietary supplements market. Last week, it suspended the accreditation of an agency responsible for certifying biologically active additives (BAAs). This decision followed the discovery of unregistered medicines being marketed under the guise of certified BAAs.