Thought Leaders
The Need for New Elements into the Healthcare System in Greece
H Karim Mikhail Vice President and Managing Director, MSD Greece
ealth policy not only in Greece, but worldwide, is undergoing a pressure for significant changes. The single most important reason for these changes stems from fiscal adjustment requirements that have been taking place in several European countries and which have led to underfinancing healthcare, and consequently, have created difficulties to patients’ access to the appropriate therapies. Especially in Greece, other than the obvious problems caused by austerity adjustments, there has also been a severe liquidity problem that is threatening the sustainability of the healthcare provision practitioners and organizations, both public and private (physicians, hospitals, medical research centers, pharmacists, the pharmaceuticals enterprises). In the meantime, private co-payments for the provision of health services are constantly increasing. Health care by its nature is a highly complex system that includes more than just a market of buyers and sellers. In that respect, the public sector plays a pivotal role, with several groups influencing policymaking. The required reforms are often disputed and new elements that could contribute to a better healthcare system show a very slow pace of progress. Since health is a major social asset and a most crucial factor for economic prosperity, the need for changes during periods, such as
For each additional year that life expectancy increases, the country’s GDP also increases by approximately 3%
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the one we are going through, becomes even more pressing. And this is our challenge today. As a first step, a new pricing system for medicines should be adopted. It shall be based on objective principles, transparency and operational efficiency. It should also seek to minimize the administrative burden and complexity, which often leads to mistakes and market distortions. In parallel, emphasis shall be placed to pharmaceutical innovation, given its importance to both the patient and the effectiveness and sustainability of the system. Today, pharma innovation is not exploited in its full extent. New innovative medicines ameliorate the quality of life, increase life expectancy, contribute to productivity increase and savings for the healthcare system. Thus they rationalize healthcare spending and the use of infrastructure, and finally enhance economic prosperity. It is worthwhile mentioning that for each additional year that life expectancy increases, the country’s GDP also increases by approximately 3%. Therefore, by recognizing that the economic benefit that arises by the investment in new drugs is by far larger than the cost of these investments, health expenditure shall be considered as an investment and not as a cost and innovation shall be promoted. In Greece, there has been no new pricing for new drugs during the past two years, although it is evident that it would be beneficial for both the economy and the patients themselves that the new approved drugs are priced. In Greece, the pharmaceutical industry has faced significant challenges over the past several years, such as pharmaceutical expenditure cuts by more