A New Way to Provide Medicines: The Ministry of Health is Summing Up the Results for 2025
The Ministry of Health's press service reports that 70.5 billion tenge, saved as a result of the procurement system reform, will be used to provide additional medications to citizens. These freed-up resources allowed the inclusion of seven innovative drugs for the treatment of cancer, cardiovascular, and autoimmune diseases in the list of free medications.
Significant savings by the end of 2025 were achieved through a transition to direct contracts with manufacturers and expanded procurement through international UN organizations. At the same time, the ministry streamlined the list of free medications, eliminating 90 ineffective medications and conditions that do not impact life expectancy. The freed-up resources are now focused on the personalized needs of patients registered with dispensaries.
The positive trend continues into 2026: 47 billion tenge has already been saved through digitalization of trading. To strengthen drug safety, SK-Pharmacia plans to build its own network of warehouses in 2026–2027. Eliminating the use of private operators will save the budget an additional 1.7 billion tenge annually.
The agency is also facilitating market access for high-quality imported drugs. In 2026, Turkey and South Korea will be added to the list of countries whose drugs are registered in Kazakhstan under an accelerated procedure (USA, EU, Japan, UK). However, quality control remains strict: last year, an examination found 112 drugs to be non-compliant with standards, and 30 registration certificates were suspended due to side effects.
A key milestone in the reform was the introduction of digital labeling, which brought medication sales out of the shadows. This increased retail tax revenue by 24% (an additional 24 billion tenge) and prevented the resale of 15,000 packages of free medications in pharmacies. Mandatory labeling of dietary supplements is planned for this year, and for medical devices starting in 2027.
The medication dispensing process has become more transparent thanks to the "Social Wallet" service. Electronic prescriptions cover approximately 90% of all prescriptions, cutting patient processing time in half. A 24-hour hotline, "1439," has been launched for feedback, and plans are underway to integrate artificial intelligence to speed up request processing.