Table 2.
Survey results on tender characteristics in countries with expanding healthcare coverage
| Country | Criteria considered for winner | Criteria differences between single source (SS)/multi-source (MS) products | Criteria differences for patented (P)/off-patent pharmaceuticals (OPP) | MCDA or differentiated categories beside tender | Tender frequency | Tender duration | Upcoming changes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Algeria | Best price (price and quality and some investment and notoriety of suppliers) | SS: importance of the product for the patient as anesthesia, oncology, hematology, psychiatry, respiratory, diabetology, and cardiovascular | OPP: advantages for local products | No | Annual for some and every 3 years for PCH | 1–3 years | No changes |
| China | Differentiated categories and lowest price | No | Yes (not further specified) | No | 2–3 years | Not fixed time | More frequent with internal reference price cut |
| Egypt | Lowest price | No | No | In some sectors (e.g., air hospital) | Once per year but purchasing based on demand | 1 or 2 years; may extend longer | MCDA included in the new tender law |
| Lebanon | Lowest price | No | No | No | Two to three times per year depending on need | Yearly | No changes |
| Malaysia | Lowest price and locally manufactured products preferred | MS: Lowest price and locally manufactured products preferred | Where possible, OPP (Gx) are favored | No | Tender called upon products achieving at least US$250 million per hospital | 2 years | Increased procurement of Gx. They will be favored over patented products. Price negotiation is expected to intensify |
| Pakistan | Lowest price | No | No | No | Variable | NA | – |
| Philippines | Lowest price | No | No | No | Annual | 1 years | Evolving mechanisms for drug price reference index for government health facilities; potential Drug Price Board that will put price ceiling on drugs |
| Russian Federation | Lowest price | No | No | No | Daily | 1 years | Stricter limitation to INN and price |
| South Africa | Lowest price and ability to supply quantities | No | No | No | 2 years | 2 years | Online tender submission |
| Thailand | Lowest price or price performance | MS: suppliers have to offer for e-bidding | No | Engineer model, IT | Mostly annual | 1 years | New CGD Procurement Act will be forced around June 2017 |
| Turkey | Lowest price | No | No | No | – | – | – |
| Ukraine | Lowest price | No | No | No | Many middle and small tenders during the year | 1 years | Implementation limited prices by IRP regulation |
| UAE | Lowest price, but innovative molecules and some brands may be considered | SS: negotiation is possible MS: lowest price |
P: negotiation is possible OPP: lowest price principle |
Brand name and patient preference may be considered in specific tenders | MOH (GHC each year), DHA (every 3 years), Seha (every 2 years) | – | New molecules and innovative technologies have a great chance in tender winning |
| Vietnam | Lowest price | No | No | Differentiated categories | Annual | 1 years | Expansion of centralized procured list, MCDA application, simple scoring |
CGD Comptroller General’s Department, DHA Dubai Health Authority, GHC Gulf Healthcare Council, Gx generics, INN International Non-Proprietary Name, IRP international reference pricing, IT Information Technology, MCDA multi-criteria decision analysis, MOH Ministry of Health, NA not applicable, PCH Pharmacie Centrale Des Hôpitaux, UAE United Arab Emirates