The new reimbursement regulations significantly facilitate access to modern bronchial asthma therapy in adults, but at the same time increase the price of drugs necessary in the treatment of young children - according to the community of patients and doctors.
The availability of modern inhaled corticosteroid and long-acting ß2-agonist preparations that comprehensively treat the symptoms ofasthmahas improved. Unfortunately, the lists did not include single-ingredient drugs, which limits access to treatment for many patients - notes Prof. dr hab. n. med. Barbara Rogala, President of the Polish Society of Allergology.
Prof. dr hab. n. med. Andrzej Emeryk, chairman of the Pediatric Section of the Polish Society of Allergology, emphasized that the newlist of reimbursed drugssignificantly increases the costs of treating children with asthma compared to last year's prices. The problem especially concerns children aged 0-5, of whom there are approx. 200,000 in Poland.
More expensive for inhaled medications
For example, one of the most frequently used drugs in the treatment of asthma, and the only one in the inhaled form registered for the age of 1-6 years, recommended by all global recommendations as the first-choice drug, last year cost 3.20 to 6.40 zloty. Currently, after the changes, its price will be 27.80 - 66.10 PLN!
It also turned out that the drug recommended for children in the first years of life costs the patient more than the variety of this drug used in older children and adults. Therefore, a greater financial burden affects the youngestchildrensuffering from asthma.
President of the Polish Federation of Asthma, Allergy and COPD Patients Dr. Piotr Dąbrowiecki and President of the Society of Friends of Asthma Patients Prof. dr hab. n. med. Anna Doboszyńska fully supported the position of the Polish Society of Allergology. - Such a common voice of doctors and patients is a novelty - argues Dr. Dąbrowiecki - we hope that on the World Patient Day on February 11, 2012, under the auspices of Fr. Arkadiusz Nowak, during the meeting of patients, doctors and representatives of the Ministry of He alth and the National He alth Fund, we will also manage to work out a compromise on medications for bronchial asthma used in children.
Detailed information and correspondence with the Ministry of He althcan be found on the website of the Polish Federation of Asthma, Allergy and COPD Patients