PRICE OF DRUGS.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLI, Issue 9896, 11 September 1914, Page 3

PRICE OF DRUGS.

ADVANCE IN MANY LINES.

EMBARGO ON EXPERTS.

The ■widespread ramifications of the war are perhaps in no respect more marked than in the effect that they are having and are likely to have, on the supplies and prices of many varieties of drugs and other surgical requisites which form an indispensable part of the equipment of hospital* and dispensaries. The needs of the large armies now operating in Europe have already had the effect of greatly curtailing the supplies of many drugs required for surgical and medical purposes. Statements criticising the action of wholesale druggists in advancing the prices of certain drug* have recently been published, and a reply to those has been made by the manager of one of,the Auckland wholesale establishments. ''There-are hundreds of lines which have not been advanced more than 10 per cent," an interviewer was informed, "but there are many other lines of which fresh supplies cannot be obtained. These naturajily have become very valuable, and high prices are being paid for them. We d<> not think that the retail chemists have quite grasped the seriousness of the position, or that they realise on how; many drugs embargo of the prohibition of export has been placed by the Imperial Government. Our firm spent about £IOO in cables to London, America, and Australia in endeavouring to secure drugs which are urgently needed, and to obtain the latest information from the source of supplies."

SOME OF THE DRUGS AFFECTED. One of the "cablegrams which' was received from London states that the export of cotton wool, lint, cellulose wadding, bandages, gauzes, and fine chemi|cals has been prohibited. Another London cable states that the expert of the following articles has also been prohi-i bited:—lodides and bromides of potas-1 shim soda and ammonia, salts of morphia, cocain, iforinalih,, chloroform, carbolic acid, citrates, mercurial 6alts, bismuth preparations,, opium, belladonna, nux vomica, and "quinine. A message from New York states that bromidee of potassium soda and ammonia are unobtainable, and that the stocks of carbolic acid are exhausted. Enquiries 6ent to Sydney produced replied stating that bismuth, ether, carbolic acid, bromide of potassium, salicylate of soda salol, sulphonial, phenacetin, trional, veronal novaspirin, protargol, and aspirini cannot be supplied from that source. Enquiries addressed to New York did not produce encouraging replies. One message stated that the price of peroxide of hydrogen, which is largely used for antiseptic purposes, had advanced by 75 per cent., whilst a later massage intimated that "the largest peroxide factory has closed down owing to its being unable to Eecure the raw material" This raw material is peroxide of barium, and Germany is its source of supply. Cables, it is stated, have been received in Sydney confirming this statement.

ANAESTHETICS AND DISINFEC-

TANTS

A cablegram from the New York house of a well-known German chemical firm states that the chemicals manufactured by this firm can be supplied at an advance of from 100 to 300 per cent, on ordinary prices. Another* message quoted, which came from. London, also shows how greatly the war is affecting supplies of anaesthetics, creosote, olive oil and disinfectants, the export of all of which have been prohibited. "No shipments from Marseilles during the war," is an addendum to this message.

The same authority states that advices had been received to the effect that morphia, the - supplysof which was mainly dependent upon America, had advanced over SO per cent, in price in America and that it would probably advance much more. No chloroform is obtainable in Australia and it wns added that it was doubtful whether any more could bo obtained from America. In the case of one particular drug it was stated by the informant that whereas his firm was recently selling it at 3s 6d a pound it was unable to obtain any in New. Zealand even by offering to pay Ha a pound: for it. "The outlook in regard tp the lines referred to," he added, "is certainly serious, and the only way in which we can protect ourselves and the medical profession is by husbanding our stocks and only allowing small supplies to go out to each customer. Doctors, of course, will have to bo very careful in the use of these drugs."

It was stated that it was expected that stocks of most of the English patent medicines would continue to come to hand at only a slight advance on ordinary prices which would be necessitated by the advance in freights.

INCREASES UNNECESSARY.

POSITION IN AUCKLAND

I The action of the wholesale houses in raising the prices of drugs and goods to chemists has formed the 6ubiect of a number of communications which Mr D. Teed, a member of the New Zealand Pharmacy Board, has received, thanking him for the action he has taken in raising a protest in the matter. In a letter from the Waihi Hospital and Cliaritable. Ajd Board it is stated that at the last meeting Dr Hyde reported that the price of anaesthetics and drugs had gone up in some cases as high as 100 per cent. The board passed a resolution, protesting against the prices being increased before wholesale stocks became exhausted. Mr Teed stated that he had received a letter from Mr J. S. Dickson, M.P. for Parnell, stating that everything possible would be done by the Government to prevent unnecessary increases in prices of foodstuffs and drugs during the present crisis. "As far as chemists aro concerned, we do not know where we stand, or what to charge," remarked .Mr Teed. "As an instance of what has taken plaoe, I may mention that bromide of potassium has gone up about 400 per cent, more than it was a raeuth ago. Of .course, there was a big rise in the price at Home. But, speaking generally, what we complain of is" that there was no necessity to raise prices until the present stocks were exhausted.