EAHP EU Monitor 16 July 2013

 

The EAHP EU Monitor is a weekly round up of news relevant to hospital pharmacy in Europe.

You can subscribe to the EAHP EU Monitor here. 

 

Hospital pharmacists warn of austerity impacts on patients

EAHP has  issued a statement expressing apprehension about the impact of public spending austerity on services to patients in hospitals.
 
The statement also calls for a European Commission review into the potential for greater joint level cooperation between governments in terms of reducing the detrimental health impacts of austerity measures.
 
More information here.

 

 

Lithuanian EU Presidency to work towards Member State agreement on policies for health system sustainability

Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, Lithuanian Minister of Health, has promised that the main health policy priority of his country’s six month Presidency of the European Union will be the drafting and adopting of Council conclusions on how to operate modern, responsive and sustainable health systems.

Speaking to the European Parliament’s Health Committee this week, Mr Andriukaitis also said that he expected the Lithuanian Presidency to adopt agreed conclusions of all 28 EU Member States in the field of health in December 2013. He envisaged these conclusions would be formed around 5 key areas:

  1. health in the context of the Europe 2020 strategy and the European Semester;
  2. success factors for the effective use of Structural Funds for investments in health;
  3. efficient use of medicines;
  4. models of integrated care and the better hospital management;
  5. measuring and monitoring the effectiveness of investments in health.

EAHP, working with other partner stakeholders in the health sector, will seek to influence debate and discussion on the potential conclusions of national governments on the future of EU-level health policies, to ensure they are robust, fit-for-purpose and cover the main needs of medicines use in hospitals.

More information here.
 

European civil society groups make suggestions to relieve access to medicines crisis

A collaboration of European civil society groups has issued a joint declaration to national governments in which they ask that the Lithuanian Presidency be used to initiate cross-border solutions to medicines access problems.

Groups such as the European Aids Treatment Group (EATG), Doctors of the World and the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) state that the introduction of co-payments, restriction of coverage, in-affordability of, and shortages of, medicines are compromising access to universal healthcare in the EU. The organisations call for the Lithuanian Presidency of the EU to lead an EU-level debate on solutions, including issues around:

  • medicinal product development policies;
  • research and innovation in the area of pharmaceuticals; and
  • drug pricing policies.
The groups also call for:
  • health impact assessment of fiscal consolidation efforts,
  • greater transparency in the area of medicines pricing,
  • further use of joint procurement by countries in respect of medicines,
  • strategies to improve the rational use of medicines, and
  • sustainable models of innovation that that promote both needs-driven innovation and affordable access to R&D outcomes.

Press release here.

Statement here.
 

EJHP: Can you afford to make an inappropriate high-volume switch?

The online first edition of the EJHP has published an original research article highlighting the need for a comprehensive risk assessment to be conducted prior to any decision on a possible high-volume product switch.

Developed by a multi-disciplinary group of experts, the paper represents their consensus on the need to conduct risk assessments when considering a product switch, what parameters should be considered and which stakeholders.

Full paper here.

 

16 July 2013