One Drifting Through Time: Pharmaceutical Policies in Mexico
Author(s)
Gasman, Nadine
Abstract
The Mexican National Drug Policy was triggered by the 1982 economic crisis which resulted in an acute shortage of many essential goods, including medicinal drugs. The economic crisis in the early 1980s forced the government to enact a more comprehensive policy. The aims of this policy were threefold: to secure access to good-quality essential drugs for the population, both in the public and private sector; to support the development of the national pharmaceutical industry in order to decrease dependence on the transnationals; and to promote the rational use of drugs. Although most of the ingredients in a healthy medicinal drug policy were in place, except possibly the necessary involvement of all actors in the ‘pharmaceutical chain’ and particularly the consumers, the time allowed for its implementation was too short; its effects, therefore, were limited. The reason for this was that towards the end of the 1980s the Mexican government decided on a drastic change in economic policy, abandoning a closed and protectionist model in favor of maximum integration in the global economy. This involved, inter alia, the rapid privatization of state-owned industries and services, reductions in government administration, and the promotion of foreign investment. For the government, the main instrument for this policy was the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). Since health was not explicitly dealt with in the NAFTA negotiations, it is still too early to say how much the National Drug Policy will be affected and what can be saved of its original intentions.
