Thousands of cancer patients face drug shortage
>> Expensive medicines expire because of cumbersome procedures
Thousands of patients are facing a shortage of expensive Glivec and Tasigna anti-cancer drugs because of cumbersome procedures.
The Vietnam Patient Assistance Programme 2 was started on January 1, 2015, and scheduled to end on December 31, 2019. Patients must have paid insurance for over 36 consecutive months in order to participate at seven hospitals including Vietnam National Cancer Hospital, Bach Mai Hospital, the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion, Hue Central Hospital, Cho Ray Hospital, HCM City Oncology Hospital and HCM City Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion.
The health insurance will pay for 40% of their treatment that uses Glivec or Tasigna medicines. The Swiss manufacturer Novartis Pharma Services AG pays for the rest.
Patients that haven't paid insurance for over 36 consecutive months will be given free Glivec medicine by Novartis under the Glivec International Patient Assistance Programme.
It is estimated that each patient has to pay VND500m (USD22,000) a year without insurance and financial aid.
Vietnam has over 2,000 patients who are using Glivec. About 500 patients with cancer are being treated at the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, however, they ran out of Glivec. HCM City's Cho Ray Hospital already ran out of the medicine since last December 15.
According to Novartis, they are facing difficulties in applying for permission to import medicines because of new, complicated procedures. After receiving the news, the government agreed to apply the old procedures to import Glivec and Tasigna before the programme ends.
In May 2015, it was reported that the first batch of 20,000 Tasigna tablets for leukaemia treatment which cost nearly VND 14 billion (USD615,113) )expired because of cumbersome procedures. The expiration date was shorter than usual because the medicines were specifically for the programme and there were not enough patients to use such many medicines, while patients at other hospitals are not allowed to join the programme. Even though Novartis already lowered the prices of the Tasigna, patients with health insurances still needed to pay an additional VND42m (USD1,800) a year so only a dozen of patients at Ho Chi Minh City Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion qualified.
In a meeting with the media at that time, Phu Chi Dung, director of Ho Chi Minh City Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion said as this was the first batch of Tasigna medicine imported into Vietnam, the procedures were more complicated. The expiration date is also shorter than usual because the medicines used for aid programme. There are also not enough patients to use such many medicines.
"The manufacturer refused to scrap the requirement that patients need to pay the additional VND42m a year. We also proposed to let patients in other hospitals use the medicine too but they refused," he said.
Dung said after this experience, they were planning another programme in which patients will be given free medicines. The manufacturer will pay for 60% and health insurance will cover 40% of the prices. Patients who are resistant to Glivec and have joined health insurance system for over three years can participate. The programme will be opened at eight hospitals.
"The authorities promised that the import procedures for the next batch of medicine will be completed within three months. We also proposed to the manufacturers to give medicines with longer expiration dates," Dung said.
Cancer patients being treated at a hospital in Vietnam. Photo by Laodong
The Vietnam Patient Assistance Programme 2 was started on January 1, 2015, and scheduled to end on December 31, 2019. Patients must have paid insurance for over 36 consecutive months in order to participate at seven hospitals including Vietnam National Cancer Hospital, Bach Mai Hospital, the National Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion, Hue Central Hospital, Cho Ray Hospital, HCM City Oncology Hospital and HCM City Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion.
The health insurance will pay for 40% of their treatment that uses Glivec or Tasigna medicines. The Swiss manufacturer Novartis Pharma Services AG pays for the rest.
Patients that haven't paid insurance for over 36 consecutive months will be given free Glivec medicine by Novartis under the Glivec International Patient Assistance Programme.
It is estimated that each patient has to pay VND500m (USD22,000) a year without insurance and financial aid.
Vietnam has over 2,000 patients who are using Glivec. About 500 patients with cancer are being treated at the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion, however, they ran out of Glivec. HCM City's Cho Ray Hospital already ran out of the medicine since last December 15.
According to Novartis, they are facing difficulties in applying for permission to import medicines because of new, complicated procedures. After receiving the news, the government agreed to apply the old procedures to import Glivec and Tasigna before the programme ends.
In May 2015, it was reported that the first batch of 20,000 Tasigna tablets for leukaemia treatment which cost nearly VND 14 billion (USD615,113) )expired because of cumbersome procedures. The expiration date was shorter than usual because the medicines were specifically for the programme and there were not enough patients to use such many medicines, while patients at other hospitals are not allowed to join the programme. Even though Novartis already lowered the prices of the Tasigna, patients with health insurances still needed to pay an additional VND42m (USD1,800) a year so only a dozen of patients at Ho Chi Minh City Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion qualified.
In a meeting with the media at that time, Phu Chi Dung, director of Ho Chi Minh City Hospital of Haematology and Blood Transfusion said as this was the first batch of Tasigna medicine imported into Vietnam, the procedures were more complicated. The expiration date is also shorter than usual because the medicines used for aid programme. There are also not enough patients to use such many medicines.
"The manufacturer refused to scrap the requirement that patients need to pay the additional VND42m a year. We also proposed to let patients in other hospitals use the medicine too but they refused," he said.
Dung said after this experience, they were planning another programme in which patients will be given free medicines. The manufacturer will pay for 60% and health insurance will cover 40% of the prices. Patients who are resistant to Glivec and have joined health insurance system for over three years can participate. The programme will be opened at eight hospitals.
"The authorities promised that the import procedures for the next batch of medicine will be completed within three months. We also proposed to the manufacturers to give medicines with longer expiration dates," Dung said.
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