The cost of 850 pharmaceutical drugs in circulation at Greece’s pharmacies will increase today, according an article in TA NEA newspaper.
The price hike is not a surprise, as it has been previously announced through a ministerial decision.
The move by the Greek government will increase the cost of specific drugs between 1 to 5 euros, which will result in an additional 30 million euro burden that will be passed off to the insured in the form of higher contributions.
The report at TA NEA reveals that some medications will go up just 1%, but others as much as 448%.
The Greek government’s justifcation for the new higher prices is that it wants to slow the withdrawal of cheap drugs from the Greek market.
Meanwhile, previous reports on the pharmaceutical sector in Greece note that there are a host of other problems which lead to the withdrawal of pharmaceuticals from the market.
The TA NEA article details the list of pharmaceuticals that will be impacted by the price revisions, which include antibiotics, anti-inflammatories, topical antibiotics, antidepressants, medications for neurological diseases and more.
For example, the cost of the well-known antiobiotic called Augmentin, in tablet form, will jump from 3.89 euros to 5.66 euros.
The overall cost burden is estimated to be 90 million euros, which will be split between Greece’s national health service provider EOPYY (60 million euros), and higher patient contributions, as previously mentioned.
The price hike will not only impact pharmacies, but the entire supply chain from procurement to the provision of pharmaceutical care, such as warehouses, hospitals and clinics, says TA NEA.
