According to Sapo news, for this year, the Government has once again reviewed the prices of medicines, with the cheapest (with a RRP of up to ten euros) being able to rise by up to 3.5%, while the most expensive (with a RRP of more than 30 euros) could see its cost will rise by up to 10%, according to the ordinance published this Friday in Diário da República. The new prices come into effect on March 1st.

At issue is Ordinance No. 39-C/2024, published this Friday in Diário da República, which defines the criteria for the annual review of drug prices in the outpatient market (read in pharmacies) and in the hospital market for 2024, as well as the price review of generic and biosimilar medicines and the reference countries to consider.

With regard to medicines available in pharmacies, the diploma defines that medicines with a retail price (RPP) of up to ten euros “may be increased by 3.5%” compared to the price currently charged, while medicines with a RRP between ten and 16 euros “are exempt from the application” of this regime.

For medicines whose RRP is between 16 euros and 30 euros, a “ 5% brake mechanism” is established, meaning they cannot increase by more than 5% compared to the current price. In turn, medicines whose RRP is more than 30 euros will have a “10% brake mechanism ” this year. The new prices come into force “on March 1, 2024”, according to the diploma signed by the Minister of Health.

Last year, the Government had advanced with the “controlled increase in the prices of the cheapest medicines”, and at the time drugs with a RRP of up to ten euros had “the price updated by 5%”, while those between ten and 15 euros were “updated by 2%”.

As regards generic and biosimilar medicines, all “ are exempt from the application of the annual price review regime”, with the exception of those with a PVP equal to or less than ten euros (which can increase by up to 3.5%, such as the manufacturer), as well as those with a RRP equal to or greater than 16 euros “and which is higher than the maximum price of the reference medicine resulting from the annual price review of 2024” or the 3.5% increase, it reads. In any case, the price of generic medicines “cannot exceed the maximum price of the reference medicine”.

The diploma also defines that in the case of medicines on the hospital market and “for the purposes of acquisition by SNS establishments and services, an exceptional criterion is established for medicines whose maximum price exceeds 15 euros” and there cannot be a “reduction of more than 5 %”. Medicines whose RRP is equal to or less than 15 euros are exempt.

Last year was marked by some stock shortages of medicines, both in the national market and at the European level, and the pharmaceutical industry has been complaining about high production costs. To ECO, the president of the Order of Pharmacists warned that stock failures or outages do not have a single cause, being caused by several factors, namely the fact that, in some cases, the price of the medicine does not compensate for the increase in production costs, which leads to “its commercial unviability”.