Delivery bottlenecks at Hessens pharmacists

Hessian Pharmacist Association criticizes discount agreements between health insurances and drug manufacturers

02/07/2013

Delivery difficulties in Hessens pharmacies. The Hessian Pharmacists Association (HAV) points out that certain medications are currently not available. Hans Rudolf Diefenbach, Deputy Chairman of the HAV, sees the cause of this development in the discount agreements negotiated between the insurers and the manufacturers.

Delivery times of several weeks in Hessens pharmacies
More and more pharmacies are struggling with delivery problems of certain drugs. According to HAV, antibiotics, blood-fat lowering drugs (statins) as well as bronchial drugs are particularly affected. „Sometimes we need several weeks to get the right medicine“, reports Diefenbach. „As a result of globalization, many drugs and their active ingredients are increasingly being manufactured in China and India due to the low labor costs.“ It was the discount agreements between manufacturers and health insurance companies, which turned the price spiral ever further down. This development is accompanied by a concentration on a few manufacturers. This created a serious supply problem.

„Especially the discount contracts, which prescribe us, which product the patient may get, force us to drive in the pharmacies an immense temporal and logistic effort, in order to be able to supply the patients adequately“, criticizes Diefenbach. „Only the health insurance companies and the health funds, which meanwhile have 30 billion euros on the high ridge, profit financially from this.“ The large demand has been met by a few suppliers. „But the danger that this can also develop monopolies with a corresponding price dictates, is great“, reminds Diefenbach. He calls on the legislator to take appropriate countermeasures.

New discount agreements save health insurance millions
Recently, the German Pharmacists Association (DAV) announced that the patients would have to adjust to new drugs due to the amended discount agreements of the IKK Classic, the company and guild health insurances, the technician health insurance and the AOKen. Since April 2007, the statutory health insurance companies can conduct direct negotiations with pharmaceutical manufacturers about drug discounts. Although the discount contracts save the health insurance millions, for the patients, however, they mean regular changes. (Ag)

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