Re-evaluating the value of generics to European hospitals

David Johnson, Global Director Commercial Excellence

Source: ADVANZ PHARMA

"‘Value’ within healthcare can be defined by many features. Affordability is the obvious and overriding factor, but value also comes in the form of treatment improvements, whether that is to enhance patient experience, or to broaden access to a particular medicine. The generics sector plays an important role in adding this value, for patients, hospitals and healthcare systems alike, providing a new lease of life to off-patent medicines and ensuring that essential treatments can continue to reach the patients that rely on them. The understanding of the need for generic medicines has never been more pronounced and, at ADVANZ PHARMA, we are committed to bringing this value to European healthcare systems, which is vital as we navigate the repercussions of Covid-19. 

The average cost of keeping a patient in hospital for a long time is high, often over-reaching already tight budget constraints. Off-patent medicines build affordability into the healthcare system, both in terms of price and the choice of supplier, allowing hospitals to free up budget to use in areas where there is greatest need. This offers an opportunity to optimise patient care and redirect funds to other medicine innovations. Of course, innovator medicines play a vital role in addressing unmet needs and bringing the latest scientific advancements to patients. However, I believe it is equally important to evaluate the options we already have available to us and make these accessible to those that need them.

Just like medicines, patient populations change over time, so it’s important that incremental innovation plays a role in the lifecycle of our treatments, enabling enhancements for patients and prescribers so that their evolving needs can be met. 2021 will be an important year for ADVANZ PHARMA in this respect, and we’re proud to have an exciting pipeline of complex medicines, designed to bring value to patients and healthcare systems. By revitalising and investing in these medicines, we are committed to improving availability and choice based on patient need, not patient numbers and we look forward to seeing the benefits our complex medicines portfolio can bring.

Continued access to essential medicines has been front of mind throughout the past 16 months as supply chains across the world were put under immense strain. Our approach at ADVANZ PHARMA has proved itself as we were able to maintain full supply of critical products with significantly increased demand, and minimal shortages or disruptions. We achieved this through investing heavily in improving supply continuity, keeping above industry-average inventory levels and having dual-sourced supply on critical products. This was brought to fruition by our strong focus on collaboration and connectivity across our network and, as a result, were able to supply almost 50% of the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) list of critical ICU medicines at the peak of the pandemic. The ongoing benefits of generic medicines are still very much being felt throughout healthcare systems as resources are being reallocated to areas such as frontline staff and helping to recalibrate healthcare services that were underserved during the pandemic.

At ADVANZ PHARMA, we have an ongoing commitment to supplying value-added, off-patent medicines to a greater number of patients, particularly in light of Covid-19 where hospitals have been placed under consistent strain and are in need of affordable solutions. The pandemic has taught us the true meaning of ‘value’, and through affordability, and continuous supply and prioritisation of provision to European hospitals, we hope to continue to see these benefits come to fruition."

Source: ADVANZ PHARMA

19.07.2021

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