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Cape Town - The pricing of all life-saving medicines - and not just cancer drugs - should be investigated by the Competition Commission, urged the Board of Healthcare Funders of Southern Africa (BHF).
The Competition Commission announced it will investigate excessive pricing of cancer medication against Roche, Pfizer and Aspen Pharmacare.
Commissioner Tembinkosi Bonakele described the matter as of grave national importance. He explained that anti-competitive behaviour in the healthcare sector, particularly in pharmaceuticals, could have a negative impact on specifically poor and vulnerable consumers.
The BHF welcomed this enquiry. It claimed that biologics - medicines produced from living organisms or which contain components of living organisms - used in cancer treatment have been significantly overpriced.
Call to widen probe
"The BHF will be approaching the Competition Commission to extend the probe to cover all biologics," Dr Rajesh Patel, BHF head for benefit and risk, told Fin24.
“We... believe there should be a widening of the scope of the investigation into the pricing of biologics used in the treatment of all diseases, not just cancer.
"The reality is that the incidence of diseases requiring biologic treatment interventions is increasing, so it is essential that the issues around cost of and access to these life-saving medicines are resolved,” explained Patel.
As the most advanced therapies available, biologic drugs are used for treatment of numerous diseases and conditions.
Some biologic drugs are used for the treatment of Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus, ulcerative colitis, multiple sclerosis and various other autoimmune diseases.
"In particular, biologics have revolutionised cancer treatment, delayed or reversed the course of immune-related conditions, changed the lives of people with rare diseases, and have offered hope for many patients who previously had no effective treatment options for their condition," said Patel.
The pricing of medicine
The BHF is also urgently calling for a scientific approach to determine how a medicine is priced.
"While single exit pricing determines what pharmacies pay for medicine from suppliers or drug manufacturers, this pricing is set by the pharmaceutical company which is free to determine what it charges for its medicines."
Patel said the National Department of Health has published a Health Economic Model, relating to aspects of medicine price regulation.
"We believe this should be implemented speedily to guide the pricing of biologics and expensive medications by manufacturers."
He said manufacturers should use the Health Economic Model to provide guidelines in terms of the justification of the pricing of medicines and other specialised expensive medicines.
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