WHO urges European countries to halt rising drug prices.

A report by the World Health Organization (WHO) suggests that European governments need to share more proactive expert opinions on the effectiveness of spending on new pharmaceuticals to address the financial strain caused by the high cost of existing drugs.

Illustration: rte.ie

Currently, very few European countries have implemented mechanisms to assess whether the value and use of medicines justify the price set by the manufacturer.

Furthermore, the supply and price of medicines are often determined through unclear agreements between the government and manufacturers, making it difficult to increase transparency and lower drug prices.

The WHO's appeal comes amid growing debate surrounding the value of new drugs. Meanwhile, assessing the economic benefits of these drugs falls outside the responsibility of licensing bodies such as the European Medicines Agency.

WHO Regional Director for Europe, Zsuzsanna Jakab, emphasized: "The important goal is to protect the interests of patients and ensure that new drugs are not offered at exorbitant prices while providing little or no significant improvement in the health of users."

The global pharmaceutical industry is currently entering a period of rapid growth thanks to major achievements in research, with many new drug treatment regimens being applied.

However, the prices of some drugs have increased unreasonably, affecting people's access to pharmaceuticals, especially in low- and middle-income countries. The prices of new drugs are a "hot" topic not only among doctors and politicians, but also among investors.

Rising drug prices may benefit many manufacturers, particularly biotechnology companies, but many investors worry that this trend will be halted as health authorities may review and streamline spending plans.

According to Vietnam+