Alex White (Dublin South, Labour) | Oireachtas source

This relates to the criteria for price setting. Section 21 of the Bill sets out the criteria to be taken into account by the HSE when it is considering the proposed price of an item for inclusion on the list of reimbursable items. To address concerns regarding the need for the HSE to safeguard continuity of supply when setting prices, section 21(2) was amended to add "the ability of suppliers of the item to meet patient demand for the item if it were to become a listed item," to the list of criteria to which the HSE must have regard when setting a price for an item. I am satisfied this amendment is necessary, given the difficulties experienced by some countries in securing an adequate supply of necessary medicinal products following price reductions. This amendment brings section 21 into line with section 24, which already provides that the HSE must have regard to this criterion when setting a reference price for a group of interchangeable medicinal products. In addition, sections 21 and 24 were amended to include a reference to agreements such as those recently agreed with the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association, IPHA, and the Association of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Ireland, APMI, to ensure the State can continue to benefit from price reductions contained in those agreements.