Government was the weaker side in med price talks with pharma: The hikes in medication prices (yes, the ones agreed upon over a month ago) made it clear that the government was the noticeably weaker side in the negotiations on the price hikes, writes Al Shorouk’s Safwat Kabel, who seems to have just now caught up on the last three seasons of the Pharma Companies vs. Health Ministry soap opera. To combat the rising prices, Kabel prescribes boosting local production of meds and putting in place consequences for companies that halt production as a pressure tactic to further jack up prices.