The political party "Vazrazhdane" has submitted a bill to amend and supplement the Public Procurement Act, which aims to limit the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF)'s spending on medicinal products. The proposed amendments are expected to save the state over 30.6 million euros on an annual basis, including for medications outside the cost of clinical pathways, the party's press center announced.
The political organization argues its proposal with the fact that currently the NHIF pays many times higher prices for medications to medical institutions, as well as to individuals and legal entities holding trade and import permits. The reason is that these entities operating under the Law on Medicinal Products in Human Medicine are currently not obliged to conduct public procurement.
“We are aware that traders cannot operate at a loss, but we also categorically believe that it is imperative that the prices of medicines be as low as possible, which is why we propose a competitive mechanism that provides for a competitive start“, indicate the submitters of the bill.
The proposed amendments provide for the introduction of a mandatory public procurement procedure for the purchase of medicinal products and medical devices. This requirement will apply to hospitals, pharmaceutical companies, wholesale warehouses and pharmacies, provided that more than half of their revenues are formed from the state or municipal budgets, as well as from the health fund budget.
If the amendments are adopted in this form, they will introduce a new mechanism for control and transparency in the import and acquisition of consumables and medications in the healthcare system.
In addition, it is specified that the bill provides for the transposition of key requirements from European legislation. Specifically, this concerns Directive 2014/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council on public procurement, the implementation of which is a standard for countries in the European Union.