Last spring, Donald Trump ordered pharmaceutical companies to set prices of drugs in the country to follow the so-called most-favoured-nation regime, where their prices are determined by the lowest prices of the same drugs in other developed countries.
According to a study by The Lancet, the policy has the potential to save the US $11.6 billion annually on drugs purchased from hospitals and pharmacies, and with wider application, the estimate could reach $46.5 billion.
However, the actual effect will likely be significantly smaller, as 17 pharmaceutical companies have reached confidential agreements with the US administration that exempt them from the rules, which would reduce the expected savings by 71%.
The decision Trump, however, will lead to serious negative consequences for consumers on the other side of the ocean. According to The Lancet, European patients may be forced to wait longer for access to some new medications.
The researchers analyzed 195 patented drugs, which cost the US market a total of $87.9 billion annually. ΠThree-quarters of these companies would lose more money from lower prices in the US than they make from selling them in the countries whose prices are used for comparison.
This leads to the danger that manufacturers will decide to delay the launch of some drugs in countries like Germany and France to avoid the risk of those low prices being taken advantage of. as a benchmark for the American market.
So patients in Europe could be left without access to treatment that is approved, effective and necessary.
"For someone living with a serious or progressive disease, the additional wait could have a real impact on health and quality of life," they warn. before Euronews from the European Patient Forum.
ΠThe problem is already a fact
This March, Reuters reported that drug sales in the EU had fallen by about 35% compared to the previous 10 months, following Donald Trump's order. A month ago, a medication for treating particularly severe cases of high cholesterol was withdrawn from the market. Although the connection has not been officially confirmed, the trend is noticeable.
"Even in larger countries like Germany, we see companies rethinking whether to launch products or when to launch them," Alexander Hatz, head of the biotech lobby Eusore, told Euronews.
According to However, to deal with the problem, European countries need to consider how much they are willing to spend on health protection.
However, the danger is not limited to Europe, as the authors of the study also point to countries such as Japan and Australia as possible victims. As a result, they see the use of list prices - the price of the product, set by the manufacturer, before discounts.
Another mechanism is the new rule in the European pharmaceutical sector, according to which, if a manufacturer does not bring a new medicine, requested by a given country, to the market within three years, it loses its monopoly. both are right.
The European Commission is currently assessing the state of the market. However, at this stage, the authority notes that it is almost impossible to conclude whether the delays are directly related to the US price policy.