HealthMin Rafila: Use of biosimilars is essential, improves access to treatment for more patients.
The use of biosimilar medicines is essential because it improves access to medicines and produces money savings that can be used to expand existing programmes and give more patients access to treatment, Health Minister Alexandru Rafila said on Wednesday, told Agerpres.
Health Minister Alexandru Rafila spoke via a recording at the roundtable "Patients in Romania will have increased access to biological medicines" organised by the Association of Generic Medicines Producers and the Romanian Chronic Patients Alliance.
"Biosimilars are nothing more than generic products in the area of biological products that show safety and efficacy, and the studies which their authorisation is based on have proven this thing. The use of these products in Romania, as well as in other countries in the European Union, is essential because it improves access to medicines in our case biosimilars, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, it produces savings of money that can be used to expand existing programmes and give more patients access to the programmes run by the Ministry of Health and the National Health Insurance House," minister Rafila said.
The President of the Romanian Society of Hematology, Daniel Coriu, said that great progress has been made in the area of biotechnology, and doctors prescribe biosimilars "without any problem."
"There have been enormous advances in biotechnology, a better understanding of the pathophysiological mechanisms, advances that have allowed first of all the development of very refined diagnostic tools and also targeted therapy. (...) They are the first users [in the hematology area] of modern, innovative therapies. (...) Today, we have the same innovative molecules as in Western Europe. We don't have big differences. We use the same molecules, the same therapeutic schemes as our colleagues in France, Germany, Spain. (...) I have not heard a hematologist or oncologist who is against biosimilars. (...) We use biosimilars without any problem. (...) It's cheap and we can afford it. (...) We totally agree with this decision to introduce biosimilars and generic medicines to allow access to new molecules," Coriu said.
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