Health Ministry to “fully finance” oncology treatment for patients after deal with Swiss pharmaceutical

The Georgian Health Ministry has signed a deal with the Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche Pharma on Wednesday to purchase “innovative” oncological medicines at discount prices and ensure “full financing” of treatment for oncology patients in the country, the state body said.

Purchasing the usually expensive drugs through the Managed Entry Agreement directly from the manufacturer will enable the Ministry to ensure the financing for more patients in Georgia starting in 2024, Minister Zurab Azarashvili explained.

Purchasing drugs directly from manufacturers is part of healthcare system plans of the Government, the body added, explaining it had held talks with “leading pharmaceutical companies” whose medicines were widely used in Georgia.

It added “one of the main aims” of the Government was to ensure “universal access” to “high-quality medicines” for citizens.

The move follows launch of imports of affordable medical drugs produced in Turkey in 2022, on the initiative of Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili, with the aim of effecting a reduction of the domestic prices on medications.

In further moves for the purpose, authorities introduced an electronic prescription system and set an upper price limit on costs of over 3,200 types of medicines in the country, with the Ministry saying the efforts had led to 60 percent reductions on prices of select medicines.