President Piñera launches project to lower the cost of medications
In an event held at a Family Health Center in Maipú, the President introduced measures to improve the quality of public healthcare and unveiled an online platform to compare prices and find the cheapest medications: www.tufarmacia.gob.cl.
President Sebastián Piñera announced on Monday that he would submit to Congress a series of instructions regarding the Drugs Act II and the launch of an online system to compare prices, both of which are aimed at reducing the prices for medications for consumers.
The President stated that “our health and our healthcare system need major surgery to ensure timely access, decent treatment and quality care”.
He stressed that “we have decided to introduce amendments into the Drugs Act II, to achieve a substantial and effective reduction in the price of medications”.
The President outlined the main proposals for this bill during an activity held at the Doctor Luis Ferrada Urzúa Family Health Center (Cesfam) in the Santiago district of Maipú. He was accompanied by First Lady Cecilia Morel, Health Minister Emilio Santelices, Mayor Cathy Barriga, and members of Congress from various political sectors. The following were among his proposals:
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Allowing for greater transparency by establishing the obligation for the Health Ministry and the Public Health Institute to be informed not only of drug prices in pharmacies, but also of the prices throughout the entire production chain.
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Easing the operation of local neighborhood and smaller pharmacies that do not belong to large chains by allowing the Health Ministry to exempt them from certain regulations.
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Facilitating the delivery of medicines by allowing the director and service directors of the National Health Service System to enter into agreements with private pharmacies.
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The creation of an over-the-counter drug sales mechanism for non-prescription drugs, allowing their sale not only in pharmacies but also in supermarkets and similar establishments.
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Authorizing the Health Ministry to determine, by regulation, how and when medicines can be divided, so that patients can purchase only what they will use.
The President also unveiled a new platform to compare medication prices online: www.tufarmacia.gob.cl, which makes it possible to find bioequivalent and generic drugs, and to geo-reference the nearest pharmacies offering the best prices for a particular drug.
These measures seek to improve access to information, empowering patients and users to make purchasing decisions that will reduce their spending on healthcare.
“Information is like a light: it allows you to make better decisions. And this is going to result in a significant reduction in medication prices," said the President.
The President stressed that the government is also working on other measures to improve healthcare for the people of Chile, such as the creation of the “Auge Mayor” Plan (a state-subsidized treatment scheme for elderly patients suffering from certain illnesses and conditions), the “Ríe Mayor” dental health plan, and a National Common Register for patients on waiting lists.
He also added that a plan is underway to bolster the main and most underserved medical specialties, and another to modernize health infrastructure, both in terms of staff and equipment. Finally, he stressed that great efforts are being made to modernize the National Health Fund (FONASA) and the ISAPRE Private Health Insurance system, as well as the creation of a Universal Health Plan.