21.07.2023 – 12:10
AOK Federal Association
Berlin (ots)
With a view to the current reporting “The Cancer Cartel” by the ARD political magazine “Monitor”, NDR, WDR and Süddeutsche Zeitung about profitable business models and high profit margins in cytostatic pharmacies, the AOK Federal Association calls for the statutory reintroduction of regional tendering options.
“For years, the AOK community has been problematic about the existing purchasing advantages for pharmacies when it comes to cancer drugs. The lists that have now been published now show that these advantages actually still exist. The pharmacy can apparently bill several hundred euros extra for each prescription made – in addition to the actual reimbursement of the working price, which is already sufficient. The overpriced amounts are entirely at the expense of the contributors,” explains Dr. Sabine Richard, Supply Manager at the AOK Federal Association.
The reporting by the research association also shows that the negotiating instruments currently provided for by the health insurance companies are not suitable for achieving fair remuneration. Necessary price adjustments could only be enforced with a considerable delay and – within the framework of the planned negotiated solution via an arbitration decision – only partially with the help of the so-called auxiliary tax.
In the course of the research, Federal Minister of Health Lauterbach announced regulatory measures. Richard: “The specific demand of the AOK community in this context is: Give the health insurance companies back the opportunity to advertise the supply of medical practices with cytostatics regionally in a transparent procedure. We have repeatedly advocated the possibility of the health insurance companies being able to conclude regional economic contracts with individual pharmacies that supply the doctors. Years ago, savings of at least 600 million euros per year for the entire statutory health insurance system were concerned. These contracts are, however, after a campaign by the pharmacy rn and doctors were banned by law in 2017.”
The supply expert Richard is also concerned about the obvious links between doctors and the supplying pharmacies or manufacturing companies. “For good reasons, one of the basic principles of health care is that doctors should not earn what they prescribe. Conversely, drug suppliers are not allowed to buy up doctor’s offices for distribution purposes.”
Therefore, pharmacies are no longer allowed to set up medical supply centers. In order to prevent possible misconduct, doctors should also not choose themselves which pharmacy supplies the parenteral preparations.
Here, too, pharmacy-side regional tenders could put a stop to it. Because since the regional health insurance contracts were banned, doctors have been able to freely decide for themselves which pharmacy they want to get their cytostatics from. That makes buying up the practices so attractive for the suppliers of the cancer drugs.
Richard: “Patients must be able to rely on doctors recommending the best therapy for them and not pursuing any other interests. Therefore, we also need comprehensive transparency about the actual ownership structures of the medical care centers.” It must be prevented that oncological care is further concentrated and unreasonable profits are made at the expense of the contributors.
Your contact person in the press office:
Dr. Kai Behrens
Phone: 030 / 34646-2309
Mobil: 01520 / 1563042
E-Mail: [email protected]
Original content from: AOK Federal Association, transmitted by news aktuell