Members of Parliament, medicine producers, importers and merchants discussed medicine production and trade in Bulgaria on November 19. Opinions strongly diverged on the issue of the role of the state in Bulgarian pharmaceutical industry. Aleko Kiurkchiev, deputy chairman of the parliamentary healthcare committee, said Bulgarian pharmaceutical industry is among the Cabinet’s top priorities. According to him drug importers should restrict their markets and assist the export of Bulgarian medicines to Europe. Foreign company representatives called the stand “protectionist”. Foreign experts expressed the opinion that Bulgarian pharmaceutical companies did not comply with international standard of manufacturing.