Currently, most of the new innovative medicines are covered by the so-called "exception" regime, i.e. it is up to the health insurance company to assess and consider whether or not the medicine is covered by public health insurance. Thanks to the amendment of the Act No. 363/2011 on the scope and conditions for reimbursement of medicines, medical devices and dietetic foods, approved today by the National Council of the Slovak Republic, innovative medicines will reach patients who need them without unnecessary delays or delays.
The law, which brings about a major drug reform, was also drafted in cooperation with patient organisations and found broad support across the parliament. By adopting this law, Slovakia has become one of the developed countries that allow patients to be treated with the latest, state-of-the-art and proven effective medicines. Health and life are the greatest value and the Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic is subject to all its steps. The amendment to Law 363/2011 is the best proof of that.
The amendment not only improves the conditions for access to our market for proven effective innovative medicines and eliminates differences in patients' access to treatment with these medicines, but also ensures that spending money in this direction is efficient and efficient. The importance of the approved law and its positive impact is also mentioned by the fact that it was supported not only by coalition partners but also by the majority of the opposition.
I consider the approval of the law on which we have worked hard with colleagues in recent months to be a huge step forward in efforts to improve health care provision in Slovakia. Innovative medicines from public health insurance funds included in the list of categorised medicines will be reimbursed by all health insurance companies without any distinction. I am really glad that this has been done, , said Minister of Health Vladimir Lengvarsky.
This reform does not end our work in the resort, but rather begins. Our aim is to approve as many innovative medicines as possible within the Categorisation Commissions so that we can make them available to patients as soon as possible. We expect, for example, that the first oncology medicines could be available to patients as early as 6 months after the entry into force of the law, and thus approximately in the spring of next year," added the State Secretary of the Ministry of Health of the Slovak Republic Prof. PhDr. Róbert Babeľa, PhD., MBA, MSc (HTA), FISAC.
The amendment to Law 363 introduces changes in the procedure for concluding contracts on the conditions for reimbursement of medicinal products or in the setting of a threshold for assessing the cost-effectiveness of medicinal products. It also creates new procedural procedures for the identification, modification and cancellation of reimbursement groups, as well as changes in the revision of reimbursement, referencing or entry of generic and biologically similar medicinal products, thus ensuring that public health insurance funds cover medicinal products at a level commensurate with the well-established clinical benefit the medicinal product brings to the patient. The amendment also includes legislation on medical devices, special medical materials and dietetic foods.