TITLE:
Financial Analysis of the Access to Pharmacotherapy for Rare Diseases in Bulgaria
AUTHORS:
Albena Zlatareva, Konstantin Tachkov, Milena Stoicheva, Svetla Georgieva, Georgi Momekov, Guenka Petrova
KEYWORDS:
Healthcare Budget, Medicines Budget, Rare Diseases, Orphan Medicines
JOURNAL NAME:
Modern Economy,
Vol.5 No.5,
May
13,
2014
ABSTRACT: The
absence of adequate national strategies for rare diseases (RD), high medicines
prices and insufficient experts’ knowledge creates to the barriers in therapy,
as well as the added factors of inappropriate diagnostics and difficulties in
peoples’ access to health care. A heavier burden is placed on patients’
physical, mental, psychological and intellectual wellbeing as well as on the
financial capabilities of the third party payers. This study aims to analyze
the financial flow for RD therapy as part of the health insurance budget and
regional differences in their financing. The point of view is that of the third
party payer for a 4-year period. The study is a macro costing top down
financial analysis of the expenditures for medicines for rare diseases spent by
the 3rd party payer, in Bulgaria that is the national health insurance fund
(NHIF). Applied were financial and statistical analyses towards the budget data
for expenditures for pharmaceuticals at national and regional level. Results
show a constant rise in healthcare medicines expenditures, including those for
rare diseases therapy from 20 to 27 million € for a three-year period but it is
not above 10% from the budget for medicines due to regulatory restrictions. A
variety of deviations exist among regional counties, accounting for more than
50% differences in payment per diagnosis. This could be explained with
insufficient knowledge and lack of therapeutic standards. There is a need for
collaboration on a European level and the creation of a global fund to be able
to satisfy therapeutic needs. A closer look at national differences and
regional therapy is necessary, as well as standardization of health care
services for better health care expenditures management.