Key View
- Policymakers will continue to introduce supportive measures to promote generic drug uptake in the APAC region to drive cost savings.
- Governments across APAC will continue to introduce reshoring initiatives to boost domestic generic drug manufacturing, however, enhanced access to generic drugs will only be realised in the medium term.
- The generic drug market within APAC will remain particularly dynamic, characterised by a high degree of competition from a multitude of active players.
Policymakers will continue to introduce supportive measures to promote generic drug uptake in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region to drive cost savings. As we have previously highlighted, the APAC region is increasingly adopting the use of cost-minimisation tools. Across APAC, efforts to optimise healthcare spending have focused predominantly on controlling pharmaceutical costs given their significant contribution to overall healthcare expenditure, reaching 19.8% in 2023. Policies concerning generic drugs can offer attractive options to reach cost-containment and efficiency thresholds. These include lowering generic drug prices via supply-side methods, such a Mainland China’s price regulation and Australia’s health technology assessment (HTA), and high generic volumes through demand-side mechanisms, such as generic prescribing and substituion policies. This is particularly relevant when considering the region’s varying level of pharmaceutical affordability and high out-of-pocket burden for healthcare.
