Mitsotakis: 'Putting an end to shamefully long EOPYY pharmacy queues'

New Democracy's interministerial bill includes several changes in legislation concerning funding and distribution of pharmaceuticals, and is expected to bring noticeable improvements to the National Organization for Healthcare Services Provision (EOPYY) manages all relevant procedures, was reported on Wednesday by New Democracy sources.

This is said to coincide with Kyriakos Mitsotakis' pledge to ensure home-delivery of medicines to severely ill patients, to their neighborhood pharmacies and to the clinics that treat them, as stated during the PM's recent visit to the ministry of health, when he said that this was not only a pre-electoral commitment, according to ND sources.

Mitsotakis also described the long queues of patients at EOPYY pharmacies as "shame queues" and referred to the distribution of medicines as an important step in improving the daily lives of patients with serious illnesses.

Therefore a key provision of the inter-ministerial bill concerning these issues states that "channels for the distribution of high-cost drugs are being multiplied to facilitate patients' access to them, free of charge and at no extra cost."

High-cost medicines which until now were exclusively administered by EOPYY pharmacies, will now be sent to the private pharmacy of the insured patient's choice, without any charge.

This program will start with medicines for cancer and multiple sclerosis patients, and will gradually be extended to other groups of severe illnesses. The procedure to be followed will be determined by a ministerial decision, which will be adopted immediately after the legislation of the inter-ministerial bill, sources noted.

Patients' access to high-cost drugs is facilitated by the electronic pre-approval process for the administration of medicines, accelerated in order to give patients quick access to the necessary pharmacotherapy.

The bill also ensures the uninterrupted flow of revenue to EOPYY from its providers and pharmaceutical companies and, therefore, its financial stability, say sources, including updated provisions to ensure hospitals are provided with sufficient amounts of medicines and sanitary equipment.