The sales of pharmaceuticals in Bulgaria increased by 12% in 2011 compared with 2010, according to data of IMS Health, a global healthcare industry consultancy.

Thus, in 2011, Bulgaria's total pharmaceuticals market reached BGN 2.3 B, the Bulgarian National Radio reported, citing IMS Health data.

Of the total, BGN 1.297 B was spent on pharmaceuticals by Bulgarian consumers, and the rest of the turnover came from state-funded spending.

Medications for the treatment of high blood pressure, asthma, urological diseases, and cancer have seen the greatest sales increases.

IMS Health experts are quoted as forecasting that over the next 5 years Bulgarians' spending on medications will grow further because of the unsatisfactory healthcare. Prescription drugs are said to be up for a sales boost as a result of the introduction of newer medications.

At the same time, IMS Health experts have pointed out the stable financial and commercial situation in Bulgaria since the Bulgarian Health Ministry and the National Health Insurance Fund are said to be paying for their medication purchases in time. This is contrasted to the situation in Romania where pharmacists usually get paid by the state 16 months later, and in Greece, where hospitals are said to have received no drug payments since 2007.

IMS Health expert Kuncho Trifonov is quoted as saying that Bulgarian consumers' trust in their purchasing power is growing when it comes to pharmaceutical products. He cited the 20% year-on-year increase in the sales of food supplements as evidence for that.

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