Armenia’s government allows change to insulin procurement contract: Tresiba to replace Levemir at 7,680 drams per unit
Armenia’s government at its 12 November session allowed the Ministry of Health to amend its procurement contract for long-acting insulin: Tresiba will be supplied in place of Levemir, which is being discontinued. The unit price is set at 7,680 drams ($21.3) instead of the current 5,475.69 drams.
According to the draft’s rationale, contract N ԷԱՃԱՊՁԲ-2026/1-1 between the ministry and «Մ.Լ.Ն. Ֆարմ» LLC was signed on 19 August 2025 under centralised procurement, to provide insulin free of charge or on preferential terms to patients with diabetes aged up to 28. Lot 2 of the contract provided for the purchase of Levemir (insulin detemir).
The reason for the change, according to the rationale, is a statement by pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk that, owing to a global reallocation of production capacity, production and supply of Levemir are being discontinued worldwide, making further supply to Armenia under the contract impossible. The ministry is switching to the same manufacturer’s insulin degludec (Tresiba).
The rationale says the total contract price does not change: the quantity purchased is reduced because, according to clinical data cited in the document, the daily dose of Tresiba is on average 20–30% lower than that of Levemir. According to the document, the ministry had signed a contract with the same supplier for the same medicine under a separate procurement procedure at 8,712 drams per unit, but it did not enter into force because funds were not allocated.
The decision affects patients with diabetes aged up to 28, for whom uninterrupted insulin supply is secured, and medicine suppliers taking part in public procurement. According to the rationale, the new medicine is injected once a day and acts for more than 42 hours.
The practical takeaway for suppliers in public procurement: where a manufacturer discontinues a product, the unit price in a signed contract was changed under a separate government permission.
