New Rx drug pricing legislation in Slovenia

The Slovene Ministry of Health is planning to save millions of euros a year by introducing new legislation on prescription-drug prices. 524.5 million euros ($678.5 million) is annually spent on prescription drugs at hospitals in the Balkan state.

However, under new regulations that the Ministry claims will make drug pricing more transparent, it hopes to save 24.0 euros million annually.

The legislation will provide for setting prices through a comparison of prices in three selected countries - France, Germany and Austria. The important change from the previous system of pricing is that prices will be regulated at the level of producers, while wholesale margins will be fixed. Supporters of the regulation say that the change will make the regulation of prices up to a drug's arrival at a hospital or pharmacy more simple and transparent.