Medicines | The patent protection of several cancer drugs is expiring – can bring savings of tens of millions of euros

The state pays hundreds of millions of euros annually in reimbursements for cancer drugs in Finland.

Multi the patent protection of an expensive cancer drug is about to expire in Europe, which can bring savings of tens of millions of euros in Finland, Kela researchers estimate.

The state pays hundreds of millions of euros in drug reimbursements for cancer drugs in Finland per year, Kela’s press release says.

For example drug reimbursements for the cancer drug lenalidomide were still over 40 million euros in the second year. When the drug’s patent protection expired and the drug’s manufacturing opened up to competition last April, only 12 million euros were paid in compensation per year.

According to Kela, this happened despite the fact that the number of users of the drug increased. Lenalidomide is mainly used to treat blood cancers.

“Last year, price competition saved more than 30 million euros in nine months already in reimbursements for this one cancer drug,” says Kela’s specialist researcher Terhi Kurko in the bulletin.

See also  Melting asphalt causes problems in Tour de France, organization comes up with striking solution

The original lenalidomide product sold with exclusive rights cost more than 5,700 euros in Finland before the patent protection expired. It was a package of 21 capsules, the strength of which was 25 milligrams.

After the competition opened, the reference price of lenalidomide for the corresponding package is only 89 euros. Reference price is the VAT retail price of the least expensive medicinal product plus 50 cents.

The competition therefore melted away more than 98 percent of the original price of lenalidomide, if the current cheapest price of the product is used in the comparison.

Cancer drugs made up about 17 percent of drug reimbursements in Finland.

Coil according to many other expensive cancer drugs, the patent protection has either just expired or is about to expire.

For example, the patent protection of abiraterone, used in the treatment of prostate cancer, expired last October. The state paid more than 17 million euros in compensation for the drug last year.

See also  2nd harvest of corn reaches almost 20% of the area in Brazil, says Pátria AgroNegócios - ISTOÉ DINHEIRO

The liberalization of competition has had the same effect as in the case of lenalidomide.

Previously, a one-month package of Zytiga, the original abiraterone product, cost almost 3,400 euros. Now you can get the same amount of medicine for 98 euros. Kela’s researchers estimate that as a result of the competition, up to 16 million euros per year can be saved in drug reimbursements.

In the next few years, patent protection will expire for e.g. the prostate cancer drug enzalutamide, the kidney and thyroid cancer drug cabozantinib, and the blood cancer drugs ibrutinib and pomalidomide.

According to Kela, all these drugs have been on sale in Europe for almost ten years, which portends the expiration of their patent protection in the next few years.

“In total, the savings potential of these drugs is several tens of millions of euros, if price competition works in the same way as with lenalidomide and abiraterone,” Kurko says in the announcement.

See also  HS in Ukraine Russia demands an end to NATO enlargement, and not even a couple on the front line support Ukraine's membership: "The consequences would be even harder and worse"

“It is important that the costs of medical treatments remain reasonable so that patients can continue to receive the treatment they need.”

When The European Medicines Agency grants a marketing authorization for a new medicine, which typically has the exclusive right to sell for at least ten years.

According to Kela researchers, the share of new cancer drugs was two-thirds of all compensation payments for cancer drugs in Finland last year. In general, cancer drugs made up about 17 percent of all medical reimbursements paid in Finland.

Kela researchers have compiled to his blog the list of outpatient cancer drugs whose reimbursement payments were the highest in Finland last year. The table also shows the date when the medicine has received a marketing authorization in Europe.

#Medicines #patent #protection #cancer #drugs #expiring #bring #savings #tens #millions #euros

Related Posts

Next Post

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended