Table 2 (abstract 17). SWOT analysis of respondents’ view of medicine price transparency practice

Internal Factor

Strengths

Weaknesses

Standardize medicine price & reduce price variability

Reduce pharmaceutical industries’ profit margin, hence jeopardizing their survival

Provide reference price to consumer and health care providers

Remove good price for certain facilities/ health care providers through abolishment of tier pricing and/or bonusing

Increase consumer empowerment in value-based purchasing

Increase geographical pricing

External Factors

Opportunities

Threats

Resolve consumer’s suspicion on industries for setting high mark-up for medicine price

Due to reduction in mark-up price, to ensure business survival, other related cost such as GP’s consultation fee may increase

Prevent unreasonable increase in medicine price

Availability of reference price to other countries (External Reference Price, ERP) may reduce optimal monopoly price at home/country that needed it, for example, the least developed countries

Strengthen the collaboration between pharmaceutical industries and the government

Reduce competition may cause market monopoly

Promote healthy competition between the industries

Lack of regulation, increase the risk for price manipulation by the pharmaceutical industries

Ease the process of itemized billing

Reduced profit margin, hence reduce investment in R&D, in turn, translate into fewer or less innovative new products

Healthcare providers could focus more to service and treatment care