A government bill to create a state-owned company, which would take over almost the entire supply chain of medicines and medical equipment, has caused clashes at the highest levels of government.

Sources indicate that this particular draft law is at the center of disagreements between Prime Minister Edi Rama and the Minister of Health, Evis Sala.

According to the same sources, the minister has expressed serious reservations about the draft and has refused to sign it in its current form.

However, according to information, the minister’s stance does not appear to have changed the prime minister’s plans.

Sources say that Edi Rama has given her until September to finalize the process, otherwise her removal from office is considered a real possibility.

The draft law not only provides for the creation of a central purchasing body. It creates a 100% state-owned joint-stock company that will plan, procure, import, store, transport and distribute medicines and medical equipment for public healthcare institutions.

But its powers go even further. The draft gives the company the right to create or participate in other public or private companies, finance projects, develop public-private partnerships, import and market medicines, and even develop production capacities in this sector.

According to sources, an Israeli company is expected to be involved in this structure. So far, there has been no official confirmation of this information, and the identity of the company mentioned by the sources has not been made public.

If approved in its current form, the draft law would represent one of the largest centralizations of the Albanian pharmaceutical system in recent decades, as a single company would administer practically the entire supply chain of the public health system, from planning to distribution and strategic reserves.

The government has not yet made the draft public for consultation and the Ministry of Health has not officially commented on the information about the disagreements regarding this draft law, or on the rumors about the minister’s departure. (VNA.al)