Workshop on the Impact of the Economic Crisis on Access to Healthcare and Medicines

Briefing 30-09-2016

A Workshop organised by the Policy Department C was held on the impact of economic crisis on access to healthcare and medicines. The speakers addressed issues such as budget cuts in health care, high price of medicines, inequalities in access to various treatments as a direct result of those cuts, addressed medicines as a financial products with their share on stock market which creates an artificial incentive to keep the high value for medicines, etc. Better coordinated procurement for medicines, as practiced by the Benelux countries, was given as an example. Further recommendations on how to improve access to healthcare were suggested by the experts and by the representative of the Commission.