Truly accused of pharmaceutical ROCHE, the Health Minister, Andreas Xanthos, is launching the decision of the company to withdraw from a positive list, an innovative herbal remedy for melanoma treatment.
The Minister even describes this decision as a provocative, unacceptable and extortionary move, while assuring citizens that they "will ensure in any way the continuation of treatment for those patients who have already been treated and the guaranteed pharmaceutical coverage of those who will in the future have clinical indication ".
She also stresses that ROCHE's provocative tactics must be resolutely addressed by all the political and social forces of the country and by all European institutions.
In detail, the statement of the Minister of Health reads as follows:
"ROCHE, a Swiss multinational drug with a turnover of around 200 million euros per year in Greece, has made an unacceptable and blackmailing move by withdrawing from the positive list of compensated drugs COTELLIC, a special medicine for patients with unresectable metastatic melanoma bearing a specific mutation.
The company relies on the non-viability of the Greek market for this product due to the recent government regulations (25% discount on the new prototype drugs) agreed with the "lenders" and legislated in the framework of the 2nd evaluation prerequisites.
The Ministry of Health considers that the citizens' access to innovative and effective medicines is not a business but a political issue . And that the challenging tactics of ROCHE must be resolutely dealt with by all the political and social forces of the country and by all European institutions. The Ministry of Health and the government are already taking political initiatives to prevent this blackmail from being carried out. They assure the citizens that they will ensure in any way the continuation of treatment for those patients who have already been treated and the guaranteed pharmaceutical coverage of those who will have similar clinical evidence in the future ".
Please note that Roche's Cotellic (cobimetinib) was included in the positive list in February 2017, but was entered into the negotiation process (for innovative medicines) in May 2017. "The 25% compulsory rebate measure was implemented uninterruptedly, process was in progress, "the company said in a statement.
The drug in question is received by about 30 patients in Greece and its retail price reaches 5,777 euros.
Commenting on the reasons that prompted her to make this decision, Roche said yesterday in a statement:
"The reason this innovative drug comes out of the Positive List is the retroactive fee of 25%which Roche has to pay (like all companies for their innovative formulations), which is unbearable, as stated in a communication, as the price of the drug is reduced by 40% - without taking account of clawback - and 50% if the clawback is included. This fact, which makes its disposal under the existing institutional framework of compensation and via the positive list unsustainable, says the management of the pharmaceutical company and adds: "This decision was taken with full awareness of our responsibility towards patients. It is a decision we had to take to ensure that Greek patients continue to have access to new innovative treatments and medicines now and in the future. "
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