Parallel trade in pharmaceuticals has become a major European Union policy issue with several `solutions' being considered by the European Commission, Member State governments and the pharmaceutical industry in the `Bangemann Process'. This paper discusses the issues from an economic and public...

The potential for parallel trade in the European Union (EU) has grown with the accession of low price countries and the harmonisation of registration requirements. Parallel trade implies a conflict between the principle of autonomy of member states to set their own pharmaceutical prices, the...

Objective: This work carries out an empirical evaluation of the impact of the main mechanism for regulating the prices of medicines in the UK [the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS)] on a variety of pharmaceutical price indices. The article also discusses to what extent the...

This article examines the potential implications of introducing a single currency among the Member States of the European Union for national pharmaceutical prices and spending. In doing so, it provides a brief account of the direct effects of introducing a single currency on pharmaceutical...

Background: The debate on access to new drugs has focused on the time lag between applications for approval and granting of marketing authorisation. This delay was identified as the first barrier with respect to patient access to new drugs, encompassing the hurdles of safety, efficacy and...

New medicines can be cost effective, and the under use of many therapeutic advances has been a cause for concern. Equally, the introduction of certain expensive products onto the market prematurely where adequate clinical studies have not been conducted equally represents an unsatisfactory...

This article analyses 3 areas of policy that could reduce the fragmentation and improve the competitiveness of the European pharmaceutical sector. It argues that a potential solution to the issue of fragmentation of pharmaceutical research, development and innovation may be the development of...

Objective: This model introduces a unique and inexpensive technique to estimate profit increases that might be expected from: (i) an additional clinical trial to establish a drug's second clinical indication; and (ii) a survey of market demand. Design: Microsoft Excel_ spreadsheets are used to...

This paper investigates the effects of changes in drug therapy on drug expenditure in Sweden between 1990 and 1995. Analyses have been carried out for both the aggregate drug expenditure and for drug expenditure according to the main groups of the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC)...