Injection Product, Excepted from the Separation of Hospitals and Pharmacies

It was reported yesterday that the government and the Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) would accept the medical circles’ demand for `the exemption of injection product from the separation of hospitals and pharmacies,` and the pharmaceutical circles’ demand for `the prescription based on the name of the ingredient of the medicine and the sales of the medicine based on the number of pill.`

At the government-ruling party meeting, which will be held on 30th with regard to the comprehensive plan for the well-balanced health insurance finance, the government-ruling party plans to finalize the complementary proposal for the separation of hospitals and pharmacies, which includes these demands.

Kim Sung-Soon, chairperson of the third politics committee of the MDP said yesterday that ``the government-ruling party consented to exempt all injection product from the items related to the separation of hospitals and pharmacies in order to relieve people from inconvenience caused by the separation of hospitals and pharmacies.`` He also said that ``since the prescription is made based on the brand name of the medicine, the lobby activities of the pharmaceutical companies in the hospitals have caused serious problems to the extent that the rebate rate has reached to the 20% of the medicine price.`` He indicated that the government-ruling party would allow the prescription based on the name of the ingredient of the medicine. The prescription based on the name of the ingredient of the medicine will be allowed only to the expensive medicine of which the efficacy has been proven over twenty years since its release. This, in fact, means the expansion of the range of the alternative prescription by the pharmacists. Therefore, the opposition from the medical circles is anticipated. Kim also added that the plan to allow the pharmaceutical circles’ demand for the sales of the medicine based on the number of pill was under consideration. It was also reported that the government-ruling party was planning to raise the rate of the government subsidy for the local health insurance up to 50 percent from 30 percent as an alternative way to solve the financial crisis in the health insurance. The government-ruling party was reported to make a plan that will change the current medical examination system in which the patient pays a fixed amount, to a system in which the patient will pay based on a fixed rate. In relation to this, another plan was reported to be under consideration. In the current system, the patient has to pay 2200 won to the clinic and 1000 won to the pharmacy only when the total medical examination fee is 15000 won. In the new plan, the 30 percent fixed rate of the medical examination fee will be applied and the government will subsidize the part of the medical examination fee to the lower income class. However, it was reported that the government-ruling party came to an agreement to freeze the insurance fee as well as medical examination fee.

Yoon Jong-Koo jkmas@donga.com