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13.12.2013
The Association of Research- based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Bulgaria proposed to health authorities a package of measures to ensure access of patients to innovative pharmaceutical treatment, while allowing for control and planned growth of public spending on drugs. The proposals include two main elements:
Agreements between NHIF and pharmaceutical companies when new therapies are introduced, to ensure rapid patients’ access to treatment, while regulating their budgetary impact. Agreements may include financial discounts, discounts in kind, laboratory tests and other services, usually paid for by NHIF, to be covered by the company.
Patients to be better informed on the product with no copayment or the lowest copayment when NHIF reimburses a group of products at the same value.
More competition between manufacturers after patent expiry.
The Association stated that the proposals could put the growth of public expenditure on pharmaceuticals under control , without the introduction of measures to the detriment of patients , such as delayed or/and limited access to the necessary medicines, increased co-payments , therapy switches and other ideas that have already appeared in the public domain.
Public spending on drugs in Bulgaria is still the lowest in the EU, the Association stated, which is why patients pay extra for most medicines and why the uptake of innovative therapies allowing for better control and treatment of diseases, is much lower than the European average . Therefore, the Association argued that access to treatment should not be deteriorated by the adoption of restrictive measures, but the NHIF and pharmaceutical companies need to sit down at the negotiating table and find a way to allow patients in Bulgaria to be treated better under predictable and planned growth of drug spending.
According to ARPharM there are more opportunities for competition between drug manufacturers after patent expiry that would free funds without encumbering patients and jeopardizing treatment outcomes. Competition can be a result of greater awareness of patients of the most cost worthy product for them in the relevant group of medicines.
The Association noted that it should be borne in mind that in some cases NHIF pays the same cost for pharmaceutical products that are not interchangeable, as biotech and biosimilar drugs and medicines with a specific mode of administration, for example. Switching a patient’s therapy from one to another product in these areas could jeopardize treatment outcomes.
The association said that there is a growing and acute need for a drug policy designed to achieve specific goals in the prevention, treatment and control of diseases, which reduces morbidity, increases survival, reduces complications, disability and hospitalization. Achieving these goals would ensure improvement in the quality of life of Bulgarian citizens and avoid the additional costs of health and social systems resulting from the complications of the diseases. Innovative drug therapies are able to help achieve these goals.