Current issue #26, 2015

Russia plans to legalize telehealthcare services

Experts of the Internet Initiatives Development Foundation together with the Federation Council and Russia’s Ministry of Health are drafting a law that will, firstly, give a clear definition of a hazy notion of “telehealth” and, secondly, legalize online medical advice. This document has a “working” status and has not been posted for public discussion so far. However, it is already known that the principal novelty of this draft law is the method of payment for such services. As PharmVestnik came to know from the document developers, they suggest that doctors receive payment from the Compulsory Health Insurance funds for advice using information and communications technologies.

[PharmVestnik # 26, 01/09/2015, p. 1, cont’d p. 4]

VED list lacks “luxury”

Medical community asks not to save on innovative drugs

The main cause of the absence in the VED list of many innovative drugs is their economic “infeasibility”. The medical community understands that perfectly well, however asks the Ministry of Health at least to attempt finding a balance between things feasible in terms of the budget and those that make a patient’s life longer and better. Doctors do not believe that Russia will be able to set up manufacturing of innovative drugs on its own quickly, and at the same time, they are not always successful when trying to treat their patients with cheaper drugs. 

[PharmVestnik # 26, 01/09/2015, pp. 2-3]

Pharmstandard may win back its status of the largest supplier for “Seven Diseases” program

One more high-cost originator drug has been substituted with a local generic in the state bidding within the framework of the “Seven Diseases” program. It goes about Janssen’s Velcade used in treatment of hematopoietic neoplasms and F-Sintez’s Boramilan. It is already the second large position lost by Pharmstandard under this program. However, one should not write off the Russian pharmaceutical giant, as the latter seems to have found a way out of the situation.

[PharmVestnik # 26, 01/09/2015, p. 5]

Parallel import initiative took international turning

A regular meeting of the Eurasian Economic Committee in late August charged an ad-hoc working group with the development of a decision-making mechanism on potential implementation of parallel import for specific commodity categories. The deadline is December 31, 2015. Opponents of this mechanism rely upon experts from the Republic of Belarus.

[PharmVestnik # 26, 01/09/2015, p. 6]