Marisol Touraine announced it, time is at savings in the health sector. And the generic medicines are among the first to be targeted by these spending cuts.
The main stake, as recalled by the minister on France info, is to “promote […] generic drugs that are known to be as effective and cost less “.
This also requires increased transparency on the prices of these drugs and on relations between manufacturers and pharmacies. “The manufacturers who manufacture generic drugs have contracts with pharmacies to facilitate deliveries, to explain the interest of the drug. The data of these contracts must be transparent and clear.”
Regarding the prices of generics, France has efforts to make. “Generic drugs in France remain more expensive than in our neighbors. It is not abnormal to want to gradually lower these prices”, justified the minister.
During the presentation of the social security financing bill (PLFSS) for 2014, on October 10, the Minister of Health had already marked the ground by asserting that France spends too much medicine, “48 boxes per year “.
Less reimbursements for health insurance
An article of the bill contested by pharmacists’ unions requires generic manufacturers to declare all commercial and financial advantages granted to pharmacists. This means that all discounts currently given by laboratories to pharmacies will have to be declared.
The government could then lower the prices of generic drugs. A lower price would decrease by the same amount the reimbursements for the Social Security.
The drop in drug prices should save 15 million euros in 2015, according to government forecasts.
