Pharma companies simplified use of additional warehouses due to Russian attacks

The Cabinet of Ministers has simplified the rules for storing medicines during martial law. Pharmaceutical companies will be able to more quickly engage additional warehouse premises, including those not listed in their license register, and disperse stocks across several sites.

The changes were introduced due to systematic Russian strikes on production, warehouse, and logistics facilities. Concentrating large volumes of medicines in one place increases the risk of simultaneous loss of stocks and subsequent disruptions in supplying drugs to pharmacies and patients.

Prime Minister Serhiy Koretsky noted that the new rules should give companies more opportunities to disperse stocks and organize logistics more flexibly.

Warehouses do not necessarily have to be in the license register

During martial law, pharmaceutical companies will be allowed to store medicines, active pharmaceutical ingredients, excipients for drug production, and related products not only in warehouses indicated in their license register.

If a security threat arises, the company will be able to promptly engage additional warehouse premises not listed in its register.

It will also be possible to use warehouse facilities of another company holding the relevant license. Thus, businesses gain the ability to move stocks from a potentially dangerous facility faster and distribute products across multiple locations.

Shipment of medicines directly from additional warehouse will be allowed

The simplification concerns not only storage. From additional premises, companies will also be able to dispense and ship medicines and related products.

This means that after evacuating stocks from a dangerous warehouse, they will not need to be first returned to the main licensed site for further supply. Products can be sent onwards directly from the temporarily engaged warehouse.

Such a mechanism should reduce the time for logistics rescheduling after attacks and lessen the risk of disruptions in medicine supply.

Use of warehouses of other pharma companies also simplified

Separate changes relate to situations where one licensee stores medicines and related products of another licensee in its warehouse facilities.

In such cases, companies will not need to additionally confirm that these premises comply with Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) or Good Distribution Practice (GDP) requirements.

At the same time, this does not mean abolishing requirements for the conditions of handling drugs. Companies must still ensure the necessary temperature and other storage regimes, preservation of medicine quality, and traceability of their movement.

Changes should reduce risk of medicine shortages

The government explains the new rules by the need to make pharmaceutical logistics less dependent on individual large warehouses.

In case of damage or destruction of one facility, companies will be able to move products to other sites more quickly and continue shipments. This should reduce the likelihood of a situation where the loss of one logistics center leads to disruptions in the supply of significant volumes of drugs.

The simplified rules will be in effect during martial law.

Based on materials from: Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine