Insulin price components: case studies in six low/middle-income countries

Introduction Understanding price components for insulin products can help design interventions to improve insulin affordability in low/middle-income countries. Methods An adapted WHO/Health Action International standardised methodology was used in Brazil (Rio de Janeiro), China (Hubei and Shaanxi Provinces), Ghana, India (Haryana State), Indonesia and Uganda. Selected insulin products had their prices traced backwards through the supply chain from public and private sector retail outlets in the capital city and a district town, supplemented with key informant interviews. Results Cumulative mark-ups ranged from 8.7% to 565.8% but the magnitude of mark-ups was country specific and variable within and across sectors and regions. The proportion of the patient price attributed to the manufacturer's selling price varied from 15.0% to 92.0%. Pricing regulations in China, India and Indonesia reduced wholesale and retail mark-ups but did not guarantee low prices. Most countries had removed import duties (Ghana, India, Indonesia, Uganda), but additional tariffs of 3.5% were still applied in Ghana. Value-added tax in the private sector ranged from 5% to 20% across the countries. Conclusion There are no clear trends in the mark-ups applied to insulin or specific differences in the price structure. A uniform approach to improving insulin access through regulating price components is unlikely to be successful, but elimination of duties and taxes, price regulation and greater price transparency could help influence prices and hence affordability.