Saving Lives, Buying Time: Economics of Malaria Drugs in an Age of Resistance

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TABLE 1-2 Consumer prices of selected antimalarials in three countries for a typical adult course of treatment (in US$)

	Senegal		Zambia		Cambodia
	Public	Private Range (median)	Public	Private (median)	Public	Private
Chloroquine tablets (150 mg in Senegal, 250 mg in Zambia and Cambodia)	.16			.16		.10-30
SP tablets (500 mg + 25 mg)	.32			.32
Amodiaquine (200 mg)	.39	.56		.33
Mefloquine (250 mg)				8.32		1.25-3.45
Artesunate tablets (50 mg)		3.98		6.44 (CHAZ: 3.12)		1.00-3.00
Coartem (artemether + lumefantrine) (8 tabs) [16 = 9.29]		5.64		22.50
Artesunate + mefloquine (blister)					.50-1.63	1.75-2.13
SOURCE: Shretta and Guimier, 2003.

Zambia

Drugs in the public sector are financed by a combination of government funds and user fees. The fees vary according to the type of facility, the area of the country, and the patient. The poor and certain population groups (children under 5, people over 65), as well as certain services (e.g., antenatal care, tuberculosis treatment, childhood vaccination) are officially exempt from fees in all health facilities, but the system is not implemented well. Where fees are paid, the usual markup on drugs is about 30 percent, similar to the private sector.

In public hospitals, consultation fees vary from free to ZK5,000 (about US$1). In Lusaka and other urban areas, health centers charge membership (averaging ZK5,000 in Lusaka and ZK1500 in Kafue), which entitles the

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