SpiFa fears a massive increase in costs and interference with freedom of therapy
20.11.2018 11:42
The Federal Ministry of Health has defined binding minimum requirements for electronic programs for the prescription of medicines by contracted doctors (Section 73 Paragraph 9 SGB V). The umbrella association of medical specialists in Germany (SpiFa) fundamentally welcomes the draft bill. However, the problem of excessive licensing fees on the part of the manufacturers, for which the contracted doctors have to be responsible, is still not being solved.
On the contrary: “We fear that there will now be another increase in license costs,” said SpiFa board member Dr. Hans-Friedrich Spies on Tuesday in Berlin. Assuming that 100,000 practices[1] If you have to expect additional monthly license costs of five euros, the health industry will incur an annual additional amount of around six million euros in the area of contract doctors alone if the new legal regulation is to be complied with. The SpiFa is therefore asking the legislature to make a corresponding correction. “In addition, we propose an addition according to which possible increases in license costs must be reimbursed by the statutory health insurance companies.”
The SpiFa is also calling for improvements elsewhere: Accordingly, the specifications regarding the findings of the benefit assessment procedures in accordance with Section 35a SGB V require clear clarification that the contractual doctors' freedom of treatment is not being interfered with. “The minimum requirements for electronic programs must only provide information,” says Spies. What SpiFa also rejects is the indication and display of the annual therapy costs of a drug in the doctor's information systems (AIS). Because these do not correspond to what is actually happening on the market, they could, however, have a lasting influence on medical prescriptions and freedom of treatment.
For new, patent-protected medicines at the time of approval, SpiFa proposes a clarification in the justification under Section II. Paragraph 4 as follows: “The findings of the assessment procedures in accordance with Section 35a SGB V refer purely to the benefit assessment and pricing for medicines. The design, presentation and technical implementation of references to decisions and information in accordance with Section 2 Paragraph 2 RefE EAMIV must therefore be carried out under the condition that the prescriptions of the contract doctors are not controlled by the references.
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[1] Source: National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians