Drug prices at mercy of Greek exit

Greek healthcare funds are drying up, which could be worsened by a potential Greek exit from the euro, negatively impacting drug manufacturing.

European countries utilize Greek prices as a benchmark when negotiating with drugmakers, according to the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations. As reported by Bloomberg, this means that drugmakers have already lost billions due to the crisis in Greece, and Europe-wide fears have been stoked.

Richard Bergstrom, president of the industry group, told Bloomberg that pharmaceutical companies will be hard hit across the continent, not just within Greece - where hospitals are already running steep tabs, unable to pay for essential medications.

“We would lose more money outside of Greece than in Greece,” Bergstrom said in a telephone interview with Bloomberg. “This is quite fundamental: if Greece or other countries would leave the euro, and you would have to make adjustments on everything, then that could throw into question the whole model for pricing in Europe.”

In Canada, drugmakers are provincial government officials have spoken out against a possible free trade agreement with Europe that they say will drive up the cost of drugs domestically, the Canadian Press reported.