A NATIONAL health scheme (NHS) would be the best way to tackle the high price of medication in Cyprus, according to Avgoustinos Potamitis, head of the Cyprus Association of Pharmaceutical Companies (CAPC).
“We should move as quickly as possible on this [a national health scheme] so that it can be offered to everyone….we’re the only EU country that doesn’t have one,” said Potamitis yesterday, adding that this would be the best system, and the way forward.
Potamitis was referring to an investigation started by the Health Ministry into the high price of medication on the island compared to the rest of the EU, including Greece. Two Health Ministry officials left for Greece on Tuesday in order to look into the retail cost of medication.
Recent developments on the NHS issue, after years of discussion, are that the Health Insurance Organisation (HIO) has passed the ball to the government with a proposal geared towards appeasing the state’s financial worries. Previously the health and finance ministries clarified that there would be no NHS because the state would have to contribute more than originally anticipated.
Potamitis explained that in other countries there is an organisation that sets up the NHS and they negotiate with the pharmaceutical companies to see which products they want to have included in the scheme.
It recently emerged that the method used in Cyprus – and many other countries – to determine the price of medication is by taking a country where the medication is considered expensive, one where it is considered cheap and two where they are considered in the middle. An average is then used to determine prices. This method has been in use since 2005.
Potamitis explained that the cost of medication in Greece has dropped lately in order to accommodate those struggling as a result of the economic crisis, but also pointed out that some medication in Greece is more expensive than in Cyprus.
Health Minister Stavros Malas has previously said that when the price of a specific medication drops in other countries – of those used to determine costs in Cyprus – they drop in the Cypriot market too.
“The problem is around 80 per cent [of the population] receive free healthcare therefore it leaves a small section who get private healthcare and because of this manufacturers can charge whatever they want,” said Potamitis.
According to a source that preferred to remain anonymous, the bulk of the profit goes to the chemist, and those importing the drugs only get a small percentage, especially if they are importing large quantities.
EDEK MP Marinos Sizopoulos said yesterday that the Ministry’s pricing method did away with a lot of the cheap medicines on the market and patients are obliged to buy more expensive ones. “As a result government spending increased on medication in the public sector, and those not eligible to free healthcare had to carry the burden,” said Sizopoulos.
EDEK calls on the government to provide more Cypriot medication by bolstering Cypriot pharmaceutical companies in their exporting activities, providing plenty of cheap medication and making sure that those who are not entitled to free healthcare are not burdened by the costs.
