Mismanaged funds?
From Czech foundations
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Zörner's counterpart Jakub Dvořáĉek, executive director of the local innovator association Asociace Inovativného Farmaceutického
Průmyslu (AIFP), is convinced that the Czech healthcare system is adequately funded—in fact, according to Dvořáĉek, even as
neighbors like Hungary have approved severe cutbacks, the Czech Republic maintained a stable rate of healthcare investment
as a proportion of GDP. In a challenging global climate, Dvořáĉek posits, "the fact that we have the same budget today as
we did in prosperous years like 2008 is a success."
Jakub Dvořáĉek, Executive Director, AIFP
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"If we look at the amount of money that flows into healthcare in this country, I believe that it is enough—it is enough to
have a very strong standard of care for all citizens." Dvořáĉek pauses. "But we need to use our resources better, in all
segments of the system."
Jerome Silvestre, President, Zentiva
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Part of the agenda of the AIFP is to create a more fair-and-balanced approach to value assessment and budget allocation.
Dvořáĉek notes that the other 'eaters' in the budget seem to get a disproportionate share of the pie. AIFP member Luboš Chadim,
general manager of Astellas CR, extrapolates: "If we look at the situation fairly, we see that pharmaceuticals are always
touched when it comes to cost-cutting measures. Equipment, for instance, has never been a real focus for cost reduction."
Luboš Chadim, General Manager, Astellas CR
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Czech Health Minister Leoš Heger confirms that, indeed, additional funds are not forthcoming in the budget. Given the global
financial crisis, the Czech Republic will have to contend with the same stable—but nonetheless relatively small—proportion
of GDP going to healthcare (7.8%) that it has seen throughout recent memory. And yet Heger, along with SUKL Director Pavel
Březovký, have pledged to find greater efficiencies in the system.
Jane Kidd, Managing Director, Janssen CR
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"We are not in heaven," Březovký observes wryly, "and we cannot satisfy all budget concerns. The prices in the drug market
are those that we can manage given our current healthcare resources—we must be able to afford new drugs, and drugs for special
cases, and etc. However, we are improving the system. For instance, medical devices do not currently receive enough regulation
and oversight. We aim to apply the same structure for registration, life cycle, and reimbursement to medical devices as we
have for drugs."
Michaela Hrdliĉková, Country Manager, Biogen Idec CR
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In general, Minister Heger promises to realize greater balance through the injection of technology into the system. Measures
like the introduction of E-health, and the further development of Health Technology Assessment, will provide an objective
data set that will—theoretically—be able to better guide the authorities in the allocation of resources to the parts of the
market that need them most.
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