Vietnam has witnessed the fast growth of pharmacy chains as Vietnamese people's spending on pharmaceutical products amounted to US$6.6 billion last year, according to the Vietnam Report.

Vietnam’s healthcare market was valued at $16.2 billion by 2020, accounting for 6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP). 

Total health spending increased from $16.1 billion in 2017 to over $20 billion in 2021, and is projected to reach $23.3 billion in 2025 and $33.8 billion in 2030, with an annual average growth rate during the 2020-30 period expected at 7.6 percent.

Nearly 90 percent of pharmaceutical manufacturing, distribution and trading enterprises reported higher revenue, and some 80 percent of them recorded profit growth in the first nine months of this year compared to the same period in 2021, according to a survey conducted by the Vietnam Report in October and November.

The experts participating in the survey said that the COVID-19 pandemic created a faster shift in the revenue structure of the pharmaceutical industry in different ways.

The outbreaks of the viral disease caused people to limit their visits to hospitals and switch to buying drugs to treat COVID-19 symptoms and health supplements in the post-COVID-19 period.

Big names in the pharmaceutical retail industry such as Long Chau, Pharmacity, and An Khang are wasting no time expanding their market dominance.

They aim to reach 7,300 pharmacies by 2025, or 16 percent of the domestic market share.

These modern pharmacy retailers win market share from traditional pharmacies as the government gradually introduces stricter regulations for pharmaceutical retail businesses, including tighter control over prescription drugs and the rollout of electronic prescriptions.

Besides, public hospitals’ more caution in drug procurement offers more advantages to pharmacies.

On the other hand, over-the-counter drugs accounted for ten percent of pharmacies’ sales in 2021 and continued to improve by the end of the first quarter of 2022.

The experts expect the market to become more competitive in the future due to the emergence of new businesses.

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