Brazil to Change Pharmacy Dosage Regulations

According to Brazilian drug regulator Anvisa, a presidential decree is expected to take effect within the next few weeks allowing pharmacies to sell drugs at the exact prescribed dose, often splitting packets into several batches of pills at the time of sale. The measure is intended to allow patients to obtain dosages within their financial resources, and according to the requirements stipulated on prescriptions.

Anvisa, which first announced the likely changes over a year ago, claims that the new dosage regime will enable products used only sporadically, such as antibiotics and anti-inflammatories, to be taken strictly according to need. However, there are concerns that some patients may obtain incorrect dosages due to lack of finance, and that some pharmacies may store the individual medicines inappropriately once they are removed from packets.

The foreign drug company sector is likely to have reservations about the new decree, as it may impact their ability to sell larger packets and, perhaps more importantly, make it harder to protect themselves against counterfeiters.