Hungary: changes in reimbursement as health budget deficit hits 8% of GDP

The central budget deficit announced by the Hungarian Prime Minister, Ferenc Gyurcsany, will be 8% of country's Gross Domestic Product as opposed to the 4.7% target in the 2006 budget. The deficit has prompted severe financial restrictions including a cap on pharmaceutical spending, where at least 40.0 billion forint ($181.7 million) has to be saved.

The new Hungarian government is due to reveal details of its health care Action Plan to reduce the drugs budget towards the end of June. It is looking at the new Slovakian and German models and there is speculation about the possible introduction of prescription charges or box charges, regulation on prescribing according to active ingredients, capped patient budgets and widening fixed and therapeutic reimbursement. Some new measures will be introduced on July 1 in order to reduce government subsidies and shift drug costs to manufacturers and the country's citizens.

The Hungarian government will reduce the reimbursement rate for around 1,000 drugs 7.5% from July 1. The measure is still related to the reinstatement of drug prices after the 2004 April cuts. The extra 7.5% reimbursement was part of a compensation plan for the population for the reinstallation of the drugs prices in July 2004 after the April price cut. This unpopular measure means about 2.6 billion forint savings for the National Insurance Fund, the OEP.