Pharma protests over changes to drug reference pricing rules in Hungary

The three pharmaceutical associations in Hungary, the Association of Innovative Manufacturers, Association of Hungarian Manufacturers and Association of Generic Manufacturers and Wholesalers have issued a joint statement to protest against the new reimbursement proposals issued by the Ministry of Health (Marketletters passim). The new draft document, which has been amended for the fourth time since its first publication in December 2006, intends to change the reimbursement rates for certain, widely prescribed medicines.

Important anti-hypertensives, antibiotics and antiulcer drugs could lose their reimbursement unless their price is reduced to the cheapest available generics price level.

According to the current regulations on fixed reimbursement in Hungary, drugs priced more than 20% higher than the reference product within a certain therapeutic category will lose their subsidy. The new changes would force manufacturers to submit their price for listing without knowing the reference level making them vulnerable to delisting. Currently, the reference product has to reach a 3% market share, but the new amendment would reduce this to only 1%.