The centre sees the domestic drug market revenue performing better in 2022. After expanding 2.5 per cent in 2021, drug revenue is expected to grow by 3-5 per cent, to 233 billion to 238 billion baht.

The forecast is based on the assumption that there is no severe outbreak of new contagious variants, or a new large cluster.

Most of the drug distribution channels in the country are through government hospitals, 60 per cent through universal health insurance and the country’s main medical expenses benefits, followed by 25 per cent private hospitals and 15 per cent pharmacies. The centre expects distribution through government hospitals to increase due to the elderly group who will rely mainly on government medical welfare.

However, the growth of the domestic drug market is likely to be an opportunity mainly for drug manufacturers/importers from abroad because more than 70 per cent of the drug market value is imported from abroad.