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Medication prices to remain constant for the next two and a half years

Shifa Rahaman
May 31st, 2016


This article is more than 8 years old.

A new agreement between Kommunernes Landsforening and the pharmaceutical industry will prevent prescription drugs getting more expensive

The price of prescription medication will remain unchanged until 15 December 2018 thanks to a new agreement between the municipalities organisation Kommunernes Landsforening (KL) and the pharmaceutical industry.

For the many Danes on medication, the agreement, which was made public on Monday, comes as very good news.

Peace and security
Metroxpress reports that many believe the measure is a step in the right direction and will lead to more peace of mind for Danes who regularly purchase pharmaceuticals.

Denmark’s municipalities also stand to benefit hugely.

“Overall, the agreement means peace of mind – both for Danes and for the economy,” said the health minister, Sophie Løhde.

Fine print 
In the past, price regulations were decided on the basis of changing salaries and inflation. This new agreement changes all those rules, as the price ceiling cannot be raised at all – unless, in rare cases, an exception is sought and granted by the Health Ministry.

“Together with other initiatives in the field of medicine, this agreement will help to ensure stability – although new drugs and increased consumption may well result in cost increases for the municipalities,” said Bent Hansen, the chairman of Danske Regioner.


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A survey carried out by Megafon for TV2 has found that 71 percent of parents have handed over children to daycare in spite of them being sick.

Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

Pill pushers
At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”