The prices of 23 medical products were reduced thanks to efforts to identify cheaper importation avenues, the Parliamentary Secretary for Consumer Protection, Deo Debattista, said on Monday.

The products ranged from asthma medication to psychological disorder treatments and pain relief.

Flanked by Medicines Authority head Anthony Serracino Inglott, Dr Debattista said 15 cheaper generics had also recently been introduced. They include medicines for epilepsy blood clotting, and viral infections.

Some of these were up to 73 per cent cheaper than their branded counterparts.

The cheaper prices had been secured through collaboration between local importers, international suppliers, and national entities such as the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority and the recently bolstered Drugs Intelligence and Access Unit.

The announcement follows a number of similar press conferences last year where reductions and new generics were announced.