Pharma sector sources cite 28 pct clawback increase

Pharmaceutical industry sources are expressing concern at the course of state spending on drugs this year, pointing to an excess of around 28 percent in the pharmaceutical expenditure of the National Healthcare Service Organization (EOPYY) over the first eight months of the year, which the industry will need to return to the state in the form of the “clawback” payments.

In the January-August period last year, the EOPYY drug spending overrun came to 377 million euros, reaching 572 million for the whole of 2018; from January to end-August this year the overrun has reached 481 million euros.

Therefore industry insiders are expecting the year’s total excess in spending to come to 73-760 million euros, after the firms received notices for clawback payments of 360 million euros following the year’s first half.