Nearly four out of every five ringgit the Ministry of Health (MOH) spent on medicines last year went towards generic medicines, according to the ministry’s latest procurement figures.

MOH said it spent RM3.01 billion, or 77.88% of its RM3.86 billion medicines procurement budget, on generic medicines in 2025. The share has increased from 54.22% in 2021.

Generic Medicines Continue To Take A Bigger Share

Branded or innovator medicines accounted for the remaining RM0.85 billion, or 22.12% of medicine procurement spending last year.

MOH said the increase in generic medicine procurement follows the National Medicines Policy (DUNas), which prioritises the use of generic medicines. Generic medicines are typically cheaper than branded medicines, even though they contain the same active ingredient and are approved to work the same way. 

The ministry also noted that locally manufactured generic medicines made up 49.57% of generic procurement in 2025, up from 44.21% in 2023.

MOH Explains Difference In Procurement Figures

MOH released the spending breakdown after a media report cited figures showing the government spent more on innovator medicines than generic medicines last year.

The ministry said the difference was likely due to the use of different data sources and procurement scopes. According to MOH, its figures are based on official procurement records for medicines purchased for the public healthcare system.

The ministry said the reported RM3.495 billion figure was based on IQVIA, a commercial pharmaceutical market database, together with Pharmaniaga’s internal analysis.

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Christina Chandra

Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister’s cats.

About THE AUTHOR

Christina Chandra

Christina Chandra

Christina writes about personal finance with an eye for making the complicated feel straightforward. She is drawn to the everyday money decisions people face and genuinely enjoys finding the clearest way to explain them. Between articles, she is probably napping, on a hiking trail, or terrorising her sister's cats.

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