Access to antihypertensive medicines: addressing bottlenecks across the supply chain

Despite the availability of effective, safe and affordable antihypertensive medicines, substantial gaps persist in hypertension treatment and blood pressure control worldwide. Building on the WHO "Global report on hypertension 2025", this report examines barriers to access to antihypertensive medicines across six interrelated phases of the pharmaceutical value chain: regulatory systems, medicine selection and prioritization, pricing and reimbursement, procurement and supply chain management, prescribing, and dispensing. 

Drawing on evidence from WHO guidance and the global literature, it identifies key bottlenecks and outlines practical policy options and strategies to strengthen the availability, affordability, quality and appropriate use of hypertension medicines. These include improving regulatory oversight and quality assurance, aligning essential medicines lists with treatment guidelines, strengthening financing and procurement systems, preventing medicine stock-outs, and promoting standardized prescribing and dispensing practices. The report emphasizes the need for coordinated action across health-system functions to support sustained access to antihypertensive medicines within primary health care, improve hypertension control and advance universal health coverage.