ABSTRACT
Objectives:To evaluate essential medicines accessibility from the availability, drug price level and affordability perspective in Beijing. Methods:Data was collected from a sample of a Beijing social security database on diabetes in 2013 and a field research on 4 primary healthcare institutions. The essential medicine equipping rate, medium price ratio ( MPR) and poverty-inducing effect were selected as accessibility indicators. Results:Among 21 sample drugs, the nitrendipine, magnesium sulfate, sodium nitroprusside, prazosin, phentolamine and glyburide e-quipping rates are less than 15%. The 9 sample drugs MPR varied from 1. 3 to 27. 4. The hypertension, hyper-lipemia and diabete poverty-inducing rate varied from 0. 44% to 0. 70% in urban areas, and varied from 1. 17% to 1. 88% in rural areas. Conclusion:Some essential medicines in Beijing are equipped with a very low rate, but have a high price level, and the poverty-inducing population is large. We recommend strengthening the monitoring of es-sential medicines accessibility and introducing appropriate supporting policies.