Silina expects Ministry of Health to develop proposals to improve individual reimbursement of medicines

RIGA - Prime Minister Evika Silina (New Unity) has tasked Health Minister Hosams Abu Meri (New Unity) to prepare proposals for improving the procedure of individual reimbursement of medicines - by increasing the amount and reviewing the criteria, Aleksis Zoldners, Press Secretary of the Prime Minister, informed LETA.

In a social media post, Silina said that the Health Minister had confirmed that the proposals would be submitted on Monday, August 19, so that decisions could be made quickly and patients could receive help.

"Cancer is a diagnosis that hits patients very hard and also has a significant impact on their families, friends, colleagues and society as a whole. The number of cancer cases is unfortunately increasing, and not only in Latvia," said the Prime Minister, underlining that around 20,000 cancer patients are receiving EUR 74 million in paid drug treatment this year.

"The budget for reimbursable medicines has increased significantly, but each single case often reveals complex problems - from financing and diagnostics to over-bureaucratization," the Prime Minister said.

She stresses that improvements in the system are long and complex, but they must happen, adding that this year the Ministry of Health has been actively pushing issues such as reducing the price and increasing the availability of reimbursable medicines, as well as developing a new plan to improve health services in oncology.

The Ministry of Health should implement both the recommendations of the State Audit Office and work with patient organizations to identify gaps in the system and propose solutions based on patients' interests, Silina said.

As reported, the Ziedot.lv donation portal is collecting donations for Evija Unama, producer of Latvian Radio analytical programs and content editor of the charity marathon Give Me Five. A panel of doctors has prescribed further treatment with the drug Olaparib, which is state-funded for ovarian cancer patients, but not for breast cancer patients. She has also been refused individual reimbursement by the State. She needs EUR 4,722 a month and EUR 56,672 for a year-long course.