I propose to take Questions Nos. 745 and 746 together.
The Department of Health, the HSE, the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and the Office of Government Procurement entered negotiations with the Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (IPHA) in recent months, with a view to securing an agreement that:
- significantly reduced the price of medicines to the Irish taxpayer;
- reduced the growth in the drugs and medicines bill to an affordable level;
- and, as a result, put the HSE in a position to invest in new and innovative medicines over the next four years.
It did not prove possible in the negotiations to reach an agreement with the IPHA that would deliver on the State's objectives.
It will now be a matter for the HSE to determine the reimbursement prices paid to pharmaceutical companies for medicines, using its powers under the Health (Pricing and Supply of Medical Goods) Act 2013.