WHO and Health Action International (HAI) have developed a standardized methodology2 for facility-based
surveys of medicine prices, availability, affordability and price components (6, 7). In the survey, data on the
availability and price of approximately 50 medicines is collected through visits to medicines outlets in the
public sector, private sector and any other sectors that serve as important medicine dispensing points (e.g.
NGOs, mission hospitals). The list of survey medicines includes 14 medicines in use worldwide (Table 4.1)
and 16 regionally specific medicines. In addition, countries are encouraged to collect data on a further 20
medicines of national importance. For each medicine, data are collected on the originator brand and the lowestpriced
generic equivalent found at each medicine outlet. Government procurement prices are also collected,
as are the add-on costs that are charged to medicines as they proceed through the supply and distribution
chain. The survey is conducted by trained data collectors, following which data is double-entered into a preprogrammed
Excel workbook that allows for standardized analysis. Treatment affordability is estimated by
comparing medicine costs to the daily wage of the lowest-paid unskilled government worker.