Patient organizations call on the parliament of Ukraine to adopt at the final reading bill No. 4662, which will provide the possibility of purchasing medicines under controlled access contracts and the Ministry of Health will be given an opportunity of developing the appropriate regulatory framework for the implementation of the controlled access contracts mechanism by the end of 2021.
“Three weeks ago, we wrote open letters to [Chairman of the Parliament Dmytro] Razumkov from all patient organizations (over 30) with a request to bring this bill into the hall. We also wrote letters to the chairmen of all factions with a request to support this bill. We hope that they will support it, since patients need it,” Chair of the Council of the Orphan Diseases of Ukraine NGO Tetiana Kulesha said at a press conference at Interfax-Ukraine on Monday.
According to her, the controlled access contracts mechanism will allow purchasing drugs with a 20-50% discount. Pharmaceutical companies are ready to supply drugs at a reduced cost on conditions of confidentiality and without using public tender procedures, since there is no alternative drug and there cannot be a better offer. Under this procedure, some countries purchase medicines for more than 250 diseases.
“Patients are not provided with the necessary drugs, because they are expensive, unregistered in the country and the state practically does not buy them. The mechanism for the procurement of such drugs under controlled access contracts is effective in 15 countries of the world. This week we are submitting for the second reading the corresponding bill to introduce such a mechanism in Ukraine,” MP Oksana Dmytrieva (the Servant of the People parliamentary faction) said.
According to her, the Ministry of Health will need up to three months to develop a regulatory framework, and after its introduction, the controlled access contracts mechanism will operate for three years as a pilot project.
“Our model of public procurement, unfortunately, does not cover the purchase of all the necessary drugs, in particular for orphan patients. The bill will create special conditions to provide such patients with drugs,” MP Oleksiy Movchan (the Servant of the People faction) said.
As reported, the bill was adopted at the first reading in the spring of 2021.
