In the second quarter of 2022, compared to the same period last year, the number of new innovative medicines that will be available to patients in Slovakia doubled. Medicines for oncology, cardiological or neurological diseases have been added to the list of categorised medicinal products. Since September, the categorisation process will become even more effective, thanks to a major drug novel approved by Parliament at the end of June this year.
The Ministry of Health published a year-on-year comparison of the availability of new medicines for patients in Slovakia. For the second quarter of 2022, a total of 24 medicinal products were approved by the CEC. In the same period last year it was 12. In the ministry, we have the ambition to approve as many innovative medicines as possible within the categorical commissions, thus catching up with the innovation deficit accumulated over the years. The development of medicine is progressing faster and new medicines can save health and patients' lives more effectively in Slovakia, declared by the State Secretary of the Ministry of Health Róbert Babeľa. Since July 1, new medicines for arterial pulmonary hypertension, for the treatment of anaemia, chronic heart failure or chronic lymphocytic leukaemia are already available. We have achieved a significant shift in the availability of the reimbursement of modern medicines for lung cancer. According to the Ministry of Health, the process of categorizing new innovative medicines under the new legislation will be fully launched as early as September this year. From this month onwards, the CEC will evaluate and assess new medicinal products according to the rules introduced by the major pharmaceutical reform of the Ministry of Health.
The amendment substantially improved the conditions for the entry of demonstrably effective innovative medicines into our market and removed differences in patients' access to treatment with these medicines. At the same time, it ensures that spending is efficient and efficient. –On the one hand, the adoption of the reform will gradually make the latest, state-of-the-art and proven effective medicines available to the Slovak patients, while on the other hand, unnecessary time delays have been reduced. Robert Babeľa continues. A major drug reform has also been prepared in cooperation with patient organisations. The amendment was approved by Parliament on 22 June 2022. It will be used for the first time in practice at the CEC meeting in September.