Expensive medicines should be bought-in collectively: NZa

pillsThe Dutch government could buy expensive medicines for lower prices by joining together with other European countries, the national healthcare association NZa said in a report published on Monday.

The NZa carried out its research for the report with experts and a number of interested parties, such as hospitals and scientific institutes.

Buying-in collectively would ‘create a strong purchasing power which would guarantee the accessability and affordability of new and innovative medicines’, the report says.

If it is not possible to purchase collectively at a European level, the NZa says hospitals, health insurers, doctors and dispensing chemists in the Netherlands should join forces.

The report also says that the price of a medicine should be lowered as soon as it is prescribed for more patients. At the moment, new medicines are prescribed for a small number of patients with a specific disorder, keeping the price high.

The use of these medicines is often widened to cover more patients and more disorders, but the price remains high. The NZa wants a legal maximum price for expensive medicines.

Thank you for donating to DutchNews.nl.

We could not provide the Dutch News service, and keep it free of charge, without the generous support of our readers. Your donations allow us to report on issues you tell us matter, and provide you with a summary of the most important Dutch news each day.

Make a donation