政府、薬価引き下げ検討へ　菅首相肝いり、毎年改定に

Government to consider drug price reduction

The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare announced on the 2nd that the price (drug price) of medical drugs decided by the government is about 8.0% higher than the actual transaction price. Since this price difference is borne by the people who pay the drug price, the government will consider lowering the drug price according to the transaction price in the process of formulating the budget for the next fiscal year. The scope of the target drug will be the future focus.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga acted as a flag-waving mechanism to revise drug prices every year, and the price was investigated for the first time. Last year, which was a regular biennial survey, the price difference was about 8.0%. Due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, the number of samples was only about two-thirds of the average year. Looking at the price difference by drug type, the hyperlipidemic drug (13.8%) was the largest.

The price difference will be the basis for lowering the drug price next spring, but there are voices from the medical community who oppose the reduction, saying, "It is not the price difference that has been negotiated as usual because it is chased by the new corona response" (Japan Medical Association executive). Is also deep-rooted. The government will consider future measures, taking into account the impact of the reduction in drug prices, which is the income of medical institutions, on management.

Source: https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASND24RW4ND2UTFL009.html