EXCLUSIVE: Romanian Govt To Revise List Of Compensated, Free Drugs, Cut Hospital Beds By 5,700

According to Romania's letter of intent to the IMF, obtained by MEDIAFAX, the Government will reduce the number of financed hospital beds by 5,700, in to stages, namely by the end of each half of 2011.

Moreover, the social service package in the healthcare system will be reformed, with assistance from the World Bank, to eliminate coverage costs considered nonessential.

"We will revise the list of compensated and free drugs approved by Government decision 720/08 with a view toward reducing the number of these drugs and wherever possible moving to generics. (…) Lastly, we will review hospital budgets and start implementing the hospital rationalization strategy with the objective of reducing the number of financed hospital beds (currently 135,200) (…) To reach this objective, by end-June 2011 we will reduce the number of beds to 133,000 (structural benchmark) and 129,500 by end-December 2011," reads the document.

Last summer, the Government decided, following negotiations with the IMF, to cut hospital beds by 9,200 and eliminate 577 hospital manager positions, while transferring 373 hospitals to local administration authorities.

With the assistance of the World Bank, Romania will also revise the compensation formula used by the National Health Insurance House by implementing a mechanism whereby "money follows the patient".

For 2012, the Government aims to control pharmaceutical costs of the most expensive drugs through a new electronic prescription system and by implementing stricter procedures.

Clarifying the legislative framework regarding the clawback tax on drug suppliers, eliminating the requirement of signing contracts of mandate with all hospitals, setting indicative caps for quarterly services signed with hospitals and granting incentives to doctors who observe these caps are among the measures to be taken by the Government.

A joint mission of the IMF, EU and World Bank were in Romania between January 25 and February 8 to review the country's progress under a EUR20 billion IMF-led loan secured in spring 2009 and to discuss the terms of a follow-up precautionary deal.

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