Eight out of 10 medicines that are not on the market are generic, limiting the public’s access to healthcare and negatively impacting the costs borne by patients and social media, the industry association warned this Saturday.
Until Friday, there were 1,214 drug presentations temporarily out of the market (a drug can have multiple presentations corresponding to different dosages and pack sizes), of which 957 (79%) are generics, according to data provided to Lusa by the Associação Portuguese Association of Generics and Biosimilars ( APOGEN) is based on data from the National Medicines Authority (Infarmed).
According to the data provided by the association, 67% of the medicines (presentations) that were discontinued in 2022 were generics in relation to the 31 years since the start of generic commercialization in Portugal this Saturday.
“On this day, we call for the creation of conditions that ensure that these more accessible medical technologies are available to the population. A consensus needs to be created to balance the sustainability of healthcare spending with the competitiveness and attractiveness of the pharmaceutical industry, which it researches, develops, manufactures and markets generic medicines for the benefit of the Portuguese,” said APOGEN President Maria do Carmo Neves.
According to Maria do Carmo Neves, “there is a long way to go” to be done in terms of the sustainability of the industry: “The prices are very low, and because they are very low, we are seeing a shortage of medicines.”
The official told Lusa that “often they have more echo” because they are very commonly used molecules such as paracetamol (an analgesic), amoxicillin with clavulanate (an antibiotic) or propranolol (to treat hypertension) that are missing.
“But much more is missing than these products,” he lamented, considering this “problem situation” for the user, because he can stop adhering to therapy and worsen his clinical condition, and for the State, because molecules that have a higher price and which are sustainable.
María do Carmo Neves advocated an annual review of prices for “very low priced items”, at least in line with inflation, and lower priced items even above inflation to enter the market.
Last year, he recalled, “the increase in these drugs was 5%, but this was clearly not enough,” he said, adding that at the moment many molecules are being produced in which the cost of production is higher than the cost. selling price to the public.
According to the official, there are drugs that cease to exist because “companies do not sell something that gives them a negative margin.” Therefore, he added, “the resilience of the National Health Service and the citizen depends on the resilience of these supplier companies.”
According to APOGEN, generics have saved 7,000 billion euros over 20 years.
According to the Center for Medical Research and Evaluation and the online counter on the APOGEN website, 262 million euros were saved this year by dispensing generic drugs for social networks and for Portuguese families.