Two bills before the Guatemalan Congress are seeking free competition in medicines, including foreign manufacturers.
A bill submitted by the Lider party, also plans to exclude open contracts. "The goal of the new law would be free competition in medicines including non-national producers, facilitating imports in order to lower prices," said Edgar Ajcip from the Lider party.
A study by the Universidad de Costa Rica notes that one company controls the distribution of 80% of drugs sold, with price differences of up to 1,000%.
An article in Nacion.com reports that there is "little or no competition in the private sector of medicine, product of an industry that is "highly concentrated", causing Costa Rica to have higher drug prices compared to other Central American countries."