Area: Zdravstvo
Competent authority: MZ, ZZZS
EZU URL: .nan
Initiative ID: 82
Initiative accepted and completed: '2013-04-15'
Initiative classified in EZU: .nan
Initiative forwarded in response: '2013-01-10'
Initiative published: '2013-01-10'
Initiative submitted: '2013-01-10'
Response from the competent authority: The Ministry of Health has received petition
  No.82 concerning the problem of wholesalers in the supply of medicines and medical
  devices to pharmacies and the resulting high prices of medicines and medical devices.According
  to the regulations governing the public financing of medicines and medical devices,
  only medicines and foodstuffs for special medical purposes that are classified as
  positive or intermediate (at the appropriate proportion of their final price, depending
  on the classification) are financed from the compulsory health insurance. Similarly,
  only certain medical devices are financed by the statutory health insurance.In addition
  to medicines and foodstuffs for special medical purposes that are classified on
  the list and certain medical devices, pharmacies may also supply medicines and other
  products financed from private funds. These other products include food supplements,
  foodstuffs for particular nutritional purposes, foodstuffs for particular medical
  purposes, cosmetic and personal care products and medical devices not financed from
  public funds. In view of the fact that the purchasing power of the population has
  been greatly reduced, it would be more than welcome if the retail prices of both
  medicinal products and other products, whether publicly or privately funded, were
  reduced. Comparing the prices of publicly funded medicinal products, the prices
  of these medicinal products in the Republic of Slovenia are below the average in
  the European Union. It is not clear from the letter you have sent us for our consideration
  whether there has been a blockage in the circulation of a medicinal product with
  a marketing authorisation in the Republic of Slovenia or of a medical device or
  any other product.The current regulations do not affect the commercial relations
  between pharmacies and wholesalers. Obstructing competition certainly does not benefit
  end-users, who therefore buy these end-products at significantly higher prices than
  they could if fair and unfettered competition were ensured. Ownership links between
  pharmacies, drug manufacturers and wholesalers are a barrier to competition, which
  is why we have included some provisions in the proposal for a new Pharmacy Act that
  will create better conditions for competition.In the proposal for a new Pharmacy
  Act, one of the conditions to be met by the manager and the director of a pharmacy
  is that he/she does not have an employment or contractual relationship with a legal
  entity engaged in the manufacture of medicinal products or the wholesale of medicinal
  products, or does not have an ownership interest or ownership with the possibility
  of influence in a manufacturer or an employer that is a related company to these
  entities in accordance with the regulations governing companies. This proposal for
  a new Pharmacy Act also contains provisions under which pharmacy operators may not,
  directly or indirectly through related persons (partners, directors, members of
  the supervisory board or other persons with special powers), establish, manage or
  control legal persons or, through capital investments or otherwise, acquire or have
  control over the management or management of legal persons, which are engaged in
  the industrial manufacture of medicinal products, medical devices and other products
  or in the wholesale of medicinal products, medical devices or other products supplied
  to patients by pharmacies, or legal persons related to such persons, and that a
  pharmacy practitioner may not be the holder of a marketing authorisation for a medicinal
  product or of its own brand name.The draft new Law on Medicinal Products, which
  is under inter-ministerial consideration, also provides that manufacturers of medicinal
  products may sell medicinal products directly to wholesalers and healthcare providers.
  Pharmacies carry out pharmacy activities, which are classified as healthcare activities,
  which means that drug manufacturers can also sell medicines to pharmacies.
Text file: 82.txt
Title: Cap on pharmaceutical wholesalers' margins
URL: https://www.stopbirokraciji.gov.si/pobuda/?st=82
