What happened
The Ministry of Health of Kazakhstan continues the phased deregulation of drug prices. As part of this process, medicines priced up to 1 MCI, which today amounts to 4,325 tenge, are being removed from state price regulation.
According to the ministry, more than 1,200 items of medicines will transition to market-based pricing mechanisms. This means that such drugs will no longer have a maximum price set by the state — their cost will be determined by competition among manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacy chains.
The measure is announced as part of a consistent policy to reduce excessive regulation of inexpensive medicines. The logic is simple: administrative price control is most justified for expensive and socially significant drugs, while for the mass low-cost segment it can, on the contrary, restrain competition and narrow the assortment.
Who is affected
The changes affect several groups of market participants and consumers at once.
- Patients and pharmacy customers. This primarily concerns inexpensive everyday demand medicines. The state expects that the development of competition will expand choice and increase the physical availability of medicines.
- Pharmacies and retail chains. For the retail segment, some regulatory pricing restrictions in the low-cost segment are being lifted, giving more flexibility in assortment and pricing policy.
- Distributors and manufacturers. The market pricing mechanism reduces the administrative burden and may stimulate the launch of new inexpensive items onto the market.
It is important to understand: the deregulation concerns specifically the segment priced up to 1 MCI. Drugs above this threshold remain under the previous regulatory logic.
What the decision is intended to achieve
The Ministry of Health names three main goals of the measure:
- Developing competition — moving away from maximum prices in the low-cost segment should push market players to compete for the buyer.
- Expanding the assortment — market conditions may make it attractive to launch and keep in sale a larger number of inexpensive items.
- Increasing the availability of medicines for the population — through competition and a wider supply.
At the same time, this is specifically a phased approach: deregulation of the low-cost segment is one of the steps in a broader drug pricing reform, not a one-time abolition of control across the entire market.
What market participants should do
Practical steps depend on the role in the market.
Pharmacies and retail chains should review in advance their assortment matrix for items priced up to 1 MCI, evaluate purchasing terms with suppliers, and prepare internal pricing regulations for the deregulated segment.
Distributors and manufacturers should analyze which of their items fall under the threshold and assess the commercial opportunities opened up by the transition to market pricing.
Buyers should keep in mind that for inexpensive medicines, prices at different pharmacies may now differ more than before — so comparing prices becomes more meaningful.
Timing and status
The measure was announced in September 2026 as part of an already ongoing phased process. Specific technical parameters and lists are best verified against official publications of the Ministry of Health, since the composition of deregulated items and the MCI value may be updated.
Frequently asked questions
Which specific drugs are being removed from state price regulation? — Medicines priced up to 1 MCI (4,325 tenge); according to the Ministry of Health, this is more than 1,200 items.
Does this mean medicines will become more expensive? — The goal of the measure is the opposite — to increase the availability of medicines through the development of competition and the expansion of the assortment. At the same time, prices at different pharmacies may now vary, since they are formed by the market.
Does the decision affect expensive drugs? — No. It concerns only the low-cost segment priced up to 1 MCI; drugs above this threshold retain the previous regulatory regime.
Who now determines the price of such medicines? — The cost is formed by market mechanisms — through competition among manufacturers, distributors, and pharmacies, rather than through a maximum price set by the state.
Is this a one-time measure or part of a reform? — This is one of the steps in the phased deregulation of drug prices in Kazakhstan.