HSE drugs deal to save €20m over four years

PATIENTS who use non-branded drugs are in line to benefit from savings of more than one-third over the next four years after a deal between the Health Service Executive (HSE) and Irish drug companies.

The agreement will also lead to savings for the HSE of over €20 million, which will be targeted at patient services instead. The drugs involved are generic forms of more expensive patented brands, and many are produced in Ireland.

The deal with the Association of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers of Ireland (APMI) ties the price of generic drugs here to that in a number of EU countries including Spain, Austria and Belgium, where the prices for such drugs are among the lowest in Europe.

As the pharmaceutical industry’s largest customer, the HSE will achieve significant savings that can be invested back into patient services.

“The agreement is a great result for patients as it represents excellent value for money and the savings that we make can be re-invested in our services,” said HSE chief executive Prof Brendan Drumm.

With a 20% reduction to take effect from next March and a further 15% in May 2008, the HSE’s overall drugs bill is set to fall by just over €19 million over four years. A further saving of €1.6 million will accrue from an increase in the manufacturer’s rebate the HSE receives.

For consumers, there is also good news of a price freeze on all the items covered over the next four years. The health services annual drug bill is currently estimated at around €1.8 billion a year.