Increases in 580 cheap drugs are mentioned in the new Price Bulletin issued by the Ministry of Health through the EOF, with most of the drugs that increase in price being widely distributed.
These increases were made at the relevant request of the pharmaceutical companies – namely, “after consideration of price adjustment requests”, as stated in the Price Bulletin.
After the mentioned adjustment of drug prices which the government proceeded with, there will be significant costs – approximately 60 million euros – for the National Organization for the Provision of Health Services (EOPYY).
At the same time, overall, patients in Greece will be forced to pay around 30 million euros more for their participation in the cost of the drugs – with their burden also estimated to be significant. average weight, the increase moves to 35% for all medicines.
The justification put forward for the above increases in medicines is that they were made because these preparations are sold at low prices in Greece compared to other European countries and that there was a risk that they would be withdrawn and cause an artificial shortage or be replaced by newer and much more expensive.
Last June, it was announced that there would be increases in medicines – to 461. However, in the end, increases were made to 580 cheap and even widely distributed drugs.
You can download the file with the drug prices by clicking here.
Meanwhile, pharmacists are warning that drug shortages are coming in August. “The quantities already available do not cover the requirements arising from the prescription of the drugs”, they say.
The concerns of pharmacists come because most pharmaceutical companies (Marketing License Holders – MAHs) close for about 20 days, due to the summer holidays.
“The problem is located in the companies whose medicines are already in short supply, since as we all know, the quantities available to the pharmaceutical warehouses and pharmacies are constantly decreasing, not covering the monthly requirements arising from the prescription of these medicines”states the Panhellenic Pharmaceutical Association (PFS) in a letter to the Association of Pharmaceutical Enterprises of Greece (SFEE) and notification to the Minister of Health, Adonis Georgiadis.
Drug shortages are coming in August
Based on the experience of the previous years, as the PFS notes, in the first ten days of August the pharmacies will not have sufficient quantities to distribute and the pharmacies will be unable to serve the patients’ medication needs.
The PFS underlines the need for pharmaceutical companies to keep supply departments open for drug warehouses and pharmacies, in order to achieve the orderly operation of pharmacies as much as possible and to ensure uninterrupted continuity of patient treatment.
“In the struggle that we are all fighting to ensure the continuation of treatment for patients, you should also contribute by ensuring the supply of the quantities of drugs that are necessary for the month of August as well”PFS emphasizes in its letter to SFEE.
According to the Association, the solutions proposed by some pharmaceutical companies to keep an emergency department open does not solve the problem in any way, because it concerns the coverage of individual incidents and not the smooth and extensive supply of drug stores and pharmacies.
“All the links of the supply chain should fight against the European problem of shortages and therefore, as the majority of pharmacies remain open in August, providing high quality primary health services for the Greek patient, it is correspondingly imperative to maintain and from the KAS the supply departments open for the orderly operation of pharmacies and pharmacies and the seamless service of the Greek patient”concludes the PFS.
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