RESUMO
Objective: To analyze the essential medicines supply of medical institutions at county-level in Shaanxi Province and to provide empirical evidences and suggestions to improve relevant policies. Methods:A strati-fied cluster random sampling method was used to choose the institution samples. A survey was conducted to study the supply of essential medicines in 2012. Indicators include the variety and amount of essential medicines procured, the medicine shortage condition, and the rate of winning the bid for essential medicine. Results:Essential medicines ac-counted for 69 . 1% of all medicines;and procurement of essential medicines accounted for 42 . 4% of all procurement spending on medicines. Of the top 25 chemical products of essential medicines, provincial supplementary medicines accounted for 33. 9%;and among the top 25 traditional Chinese medicines of essential medicines, the provincial sup-plementary medicines accounted for 51. 9%. All 27 medical institutions faced a shortage of medicines. There were 47 kinds of essential drugs in urgent need were out of bid. Conclusion:Essential medicine supply of medical institutions at county-level is in good condition;however, more attention needs to be paid to medicine shortage. We should take measurements to standardize the process of bidding for essential medicines and strengthen the management of medi-cine shortage in order to better meet patients’ needs.