Chapter 14: The Impact of German Reference Pricing on Statins

The impact of German reference pricing on statins Dyslipidemia is a largely asymptomatic disorder that seriously increases the cardiovascular risk of the majority of the adult population in Germany and other industrialized nations. Inadequate treatment of dyslipidemia can lead to coronary heart disease (CHD) or stroke, events that can have devastating or even fatal consequences. The size of the dyslipidemic population and the severity of this disease and its complications make dyslipidemia a major public health issue for all industrialized nations. The German government is acutely conscious of the need to tackle this problem, but it has also been struggling for many years to slow down the relentless growth of public healthcare expenditures. The government has focused its cost-containment efforts primarily on pharmaceutical spending. This strategy is based on the contention that many of the best-selling drugs on the market lack innovation and are therefore overpriced, particularly in cases where ...

Users without subscription are not able to see the full content on this title. Please, subscribe or login to access all content on this website.

• Buy The Book