The controversial medication review board, which should regulate uniform access to particularly expensive medicines in hospitals, will soon become a reality. However, the concerns of patient representatives and criticism from health experts and doctors were not taken into account. The committee remains unchanged, as can be seen from the rules of procedure available to the “Krone”.
The basic idea of the board is welcomed by knowledgeable people. The point is that special, particularly expensive medicines and therapies (for example 200,000 euros per patient) are purchased for hospitals in a coordinated and uniform manner. Currently, each hospital buys for itself and negotiates with the pharmaceutical industry. The contracts are often secret. This new committee must be established, not least to save costs for the system.
Too few experts in the committee
However, there is enormous criticism of its composition. Of the 24 voting members, only 3 are independent representatives of science. The sole patient representative has no voting rights. Most committee members are sent by authorities and ‘payers’, such as the Ministry of Health, the Federal Office for Healthcare Safety, the states and social insurance companies.
No personal access to external advisors
If external experts are engaged, the agency may only “provide necessary information” to board members. The members of the board are in fact denied access to the information value of external experts, because personal advice is not possible.
There were fears of months of delays
One of the biggest points of criticism is the feared delay. In principle, therapies may only be applied after the committee has assessed them. Five months are planned for the evaluation by the evaluation committee, with the option to extend the period to a total of eight months. Critics see this as an unreasonable delay that could have fatal consequences for patients’ lives.
Economics before medical necessity
While many experts welcome the standardization of medication distribution in Austria, they see the administration focusing on economic efficiency and not on medicines. The procedural rules prescribe the reduction of the medical benefits of a therapy and therefore contradict the legally guaranteed level of treatment in accordance with the current state of medical and pharmaceutical science.
There were legal concerns
Many experts have constitutional thanks here. In concrete terms, this concerns medicines that cost more than 50,000 euros per package or monthly therapy costs of 20,000 euros or annual therapy costs of more than 200,000 euros. Health Minister Johannes Rauch has not yet listened to the experts’ concerns. He states that the board will mainly create more transparency.
Until now, each hospital has conducted its own negotiations with the pharmaceutical companies, which have also been completely non-transparent. Moreover, the committee only includes expert representatives from the fields of human medicine and pharmacy, who can only make recommendations. The final decision regarding medication still rests with the treating physician or hospital. This Friday, the rules of procedure of the evaluation committee will be approved in the so-called target group steering group between the federal and state governments.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
