Vol. 510 No. 6
255 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Health and Children the steps, if any, he will take with pharmaceutical manufacturers in view of the fact that the British Government has recently agreed to a 4.5% reduction in the price of prescription medicines; and if he will make a full statement on the agreement existing between his Department and the pharmaceutical industry on the price of prescription medication. [23370/99]
The price of drugs and medicines, ex manufacturer, in Ireland has been subject to control since 1972 through the mechanism of formal multi-annual agreements with the Irish Pharmaceutical Health Care Association – IPHA.
The current agreement, which covers the period 1 August 1997 to 31 July 2002 and the previous agreement for the period 1993 – 1997, provides for a price freeze on the price of medicines to the Irish market. In effect, therefore, at the end of the current agreement, a price freeze will have existed for ten years. Accordingly, I am satisfied that the agreements with IPHA represent good value for money for the Irish taxpayer and I have no plans to re-negotiate the current agreement. However, in negotiating future agreements with the industry, my Department will take account of any overall price variations which may have taken place internationally to ensure that Irish prices for medicines are not out of line with international prices.
