Iran's economy minister says the current drug pricing method is inadequate and a review has begun

Seyed Ali Madanizadeh, Iran's minister of economic affairs and finance, said on Monday, 27 July 2026 (5 Mordad 1405), that continuing with the current method of pricing medicines does not answer present conditions and that the pricing mechanism used by the Food and Drug Administration needs to be revised. He proposed a meeting with representatives of the private sector to reach a common conclusion on a new mechanism, and added that the Health Ministry and the Food and Drug Administration must state their policy on price increases so that the private sector's rights are not infringed.

On debts in the sector, Madanizadeh said the real scale of the debts must first be established through a special audit, after which the government's obligations would be determined so that resources to pay them could be included in the 1406 budget bill. As far as he was aware, he said, no resource for paying these debts was set aside in the 1405 budget, and the government cannot allocate credit outside the framework of the law.

Referring to the preferential exchange rate and the Daroyar scheme, the minister said that approach had also failed to meet its intended goals. He said about 85 trillion tomans was allocated to the pharmaceutical sector in 1401, a figure that has lost its effectiveness as the drug market has grown, and that even if 262 trillion tomans were provided this year, insurers could only cover 1405 costs. According to estimates by research centres, the sums required are roughly 70 to 80 percent above the figures approved by the government and parliament.