2024-08-26 13:10:58
The prices of hundreds of medicines are increasing from today after the re-pricing carried out by EOF a few weeks ago, which means that an additional burden will be placed on the pocket of the insured through his participation in the preparations that must be provided.
The new Price List includes increases for about 800 cheap drugs requested by the pharmaceutical companies that produce them, so that they do not withdraw from the Greek market due to the high production costs.
Increases were initially announced for 580 drugs, but then, after protests from pharmaceutical companies, increases were given to many more drugs, more than 800 in total.
A specific example is the dermatological antibiotic formulation, which contains the active substance tyrothricin and from 0.96 euros it reaches 5.26 euros.
Also another drug for the nervous system with haloperidol as an active ingredient increased from 2.7 euros to 12.35 euros.
However, it is worth noting that the average increase for all medicines is 35%, although it will increase the expenditure on EOPYY by about 60 million euros, and patients will pay increased participations of about 30 million euros.
The leadership of the Ministry of Health estimates that, with the given increases, about 200 medicines imported from abroad through IFET will return to the Greek market at multiple prices. In the case of those imports, IFET had about 90 million euros per year.
What does Adonis Georgiadis answer?
However, the Minister of Health, Adonis Georgiadis, says in his extensive post on social media as always, “The increases took place after a long-term, two-stage, transparent process by @eof_gr. These are usually price adjustments to the average of the 2 lowest prices in the Eurozone, for medicines whose prices have been fixed for the past 10 years, due to reductions implemented during the crisis.
The adjustments were applied with strict criteria and related to unique, non-replaceable medicines that are in long-term shortage and obtained through IFET at significantly higher prices.
In addition, the adjustments were mainly related to economic treatments, where their replacement costs were much higher than the increases given.
With these price adjustments, patients are guaranteed immediate access to affordable treatments, with low participation costs, reducing treatment costs and protecting public health.”
From today, the price increases given for various cheap medicines are valid.
These increases were the result of a long-term, two-stage, transparent process carried out by @eof_gr.
Usually, these are price adjustments to the average of the 2 lowest prices in the Eurozone,… pic.twitter.com/BWTTOW6qui
However, the Minister of Health tries to deny that the general burden on patients will be close to 30 million euros, although these are calculations made by the competent services of the Ministry of Health and the EOF.
Indeed, Adonis Georgiadis notes: “The relevant headlines about the financial burden on patients with €30,000,000 are completely misleading. These Remedies, because of their prices below cost, were in chronic shortage, or complete withdrawal. Remember how many times you looked for different drugs yourself and could not find them, or how many publications you read about the shortage of cheap drugs. We solved this problem today.”
The Minister of Health also refers to relevant examples of increases:
The following preparations are a typical example: LASIX: Antihypertensive drug, whose producer price increased from €1.35 to €1.89 T3: Hypothyroid drug, whose producer price increased from €1.59 to €4.79 MILITHIN: Antipsychotic drug , the producer price increased from €2.85 to €5.22 URSOFALK: Drug for Cholelithiasis, the producer price increased from €6.55 to €8.48 ETOPOSIDE: Oncology drug, the producer price increased from €8.11 to €22.88
Source: ethnos, Greek
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