Brazil Allows Price Increases for Drugs Above Inflation

The Brazilian health ministry’s annual price readjustment March 31 for 9,000 prescription drugs whose prices are controlled by the government was the first adjustment in 10 years that was more than the rate of inflation.

The maximum increase, which took effect April 1, was set at 12.5 percent, meaning that companies may raise their prices above the annual inflation rate, which was 10.3 percent in 2015.

In previous years, the ministry’s Medications Market Regulating Chamber divided medications into three categories based on the degree of competition they faced from generic drugs. The greater the competition, the higher the price increase. ...