State to cut cost of vital drugs

THE Department of Health is examining the possibility of enforcing a “generic pricing system” in an attempt to reduce the cost of vital pharmaceutical drugs to the public.

The generic pricing system would cost the State far less and would be based on the price range of generic drugs, which are similar but cheaper than patent-protected drugs.

Speaking to the Irish Examiner after it emerged that health officials are paying €98 million more for standard drugs than their counterparts in Britain, the department said “all options” would be considered to reduce the cost.

According to figures obtained by Fine Gael health spokesman Dr James Reilly, Irish authorities are paying vastly inflated costs on some of the most popular GP-prescribed drugs in the country by using company-specific products instead of the generic alternatives.

Dr Reilly said the situation – which includes a €98m overspend on nine of the 20 most commonly prescribed medications – means the State is allowing itself to be “ripped off” by pharmaceutical firms, adding that it “is abundantly clear that if these savings were expanded over the entire drugs bill hundreds of millions could be saved”.

The comments have been welcomed by support group Patients Together, with spokeswoman Janette Byrne stating that the overspend on products like peptic ulcer drug omeprazole and cardiovascular disease medication pravastatin was unacceptable at a time when the health service was “crying out” for funding.

However, the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) said, while the costs were high, companies would consider pulling out of Ireland if reductions were made.

“Historically versus the UK, Ireland has always had higher prices. Some companies would consider withdrawing products if they were offered at a lower price,” a IPHA spokesperson said, adding that lower prices were more likely in states with larger populations.

In a statement reacting to the figures, a spokesperson for the Department of Health said the current costs of the relevant medications were governed by an existing agreement between the HSE and pharmaceutical firms.

However, the spokesperson said the “current agreements” will be up for review in September 2010.

“The department and the HSE are continuing to examine all options for containing pharmaceutical expenditure.

“These include the introduction of a system of generic reference pricing, the promotion of more cost-effective prescribing by GPs, greater use of generic preparations and quality prescribing indicators,” said the spokesperson.