Many politicians don't miss out on catchy slogans.

Hesse's Prime Minister Boris Rhein (CDU) issued the motto last week: "Ointments instead of worries, fever juice instead of shortage economy." And while others first set up a working group to solve the problem, Rhein is organizationally three levels higher: A "children's health summit with participation of the federal states and the pharmaceutical industry" demanded the Wiesbaden state politician.

After all, it can't be "that children no longer get cough syrup, their parents are worried and don't know what to do anymore and the medical staff desperately calls for medicine".

Thiemo Heeg

Editor in Business.

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The example shows that politics is in top form when the people threaten to grumble.

Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) also reacted recently when reports about the shortage of medicines in Germany got the upper hand: In December, as a measure against the shortage, he announced that health insurance companies should pay more money for certain medicines in future so that deliveries to Germany can be made more profitable for pharmaceutical companies.

"Hassle isn't helpful"

The industry is skeptical.

There is talk of a hectically put together immediate program.

"The problem is neither new nor surprising," says Han Steutel, President of the Association of Research-Based Drug Manufacturers (VFA).

There have long been warnings that, for example, antibiotics or painkillers could be missing.

"But almost nothing happened," says Steutel angrily.

It is long overdue for politicians to act now.

“But rushing is not helpful.

What we need is a structural and sustainable solution to secure tomorrow's supply of medicines in Germany."

The association has now drawn up a five-point plan for this, which the FAZ has received in advance.

As a basic requirement, more transparency about stocks and flows of medicines is called for: "Only if it is known how long stocks will last in case of doubt can countermeasures be taken in good time." An early warning system that reliably predicts drug shortages is required.

The competent federal office has already set up an expert council for this purpose.

"But there is a much better and more reliable way," believes the VFA - and refers to the existing Securpharm information system.

This digitally records all existing and pharmacy-only medicines throughout Europe in order to prevent product counterfeiting.

According to the association, it can also be used at any time to determine

where which pack is currently being stored or has been sold.

“This data has so far been lying around unused,” it says.

However, they would be suitable for identifying supply problems at an early stage.

The price of security of supply

Another point of the plan recommends systematic stress tests for supply chains, similar to those in America.

If it turns out that the dependencies on individual locations and upstream service producers or technology suppliers are too great, suitable measures to spread these risks would have to be taken.

"In particular, this includes the fact that supply contracts are concluded with more than just one drug manufacturer, or at least that it is rewarded if a manufacturer secures its supply structures against extraordinary disruptions." Ultimately, this could mean that drugs become more expensive - but security of supply has "a price," he states VFA.

The need for action goes far beyond generics, i.e. copycat preparations, which have recently been missing from time to time.

On the other hand, people in the industry think little of bringing productions back to Germany.

This discussion, which politicians also like to have, must be ended.

"As tempting as that sounds, it is not a suitable way to increase supply security," emphasizes Claus Michelsen, VFA Managing Director responsible for economic policy.

Rather, he sees it as an expensive approach to maintain permanently subsidized production at the location that is not globally competitive.

Higher prices "not a sustainable solution"

The discussion about the proposals is likely to continue, especially since the problem of a shortage of medicines is not only a topic of discussion among patients, but also among experts.

Two weeks ago, the German Society for Hematology and Medical Oncology (DGHO) pointed out that the number of drug shortages in cancer therapy had increased significantly in the past year.

The main drugs affected are those that have been used in cancer therapy for years, for example the breast cancer drug tamoxifen and nab-paclitaxel, which is also used in breast cancer, pancreatic cancer and lung cancer.

Last year, out of around 200 cancer drugs approved in Germany, around ten were "critically missing," said Bernhard Wörmann, medical director of the DGHO.

The concern is

that an uncompensated delivery bottleneck becomes a supply bottleneck.

"And then, that's the horror for us that the prognosis actually gets worse."

In the meantime, the health insurance companies have decided on measures to defuse the tense situation with children's medicines such as fever syrup or suppositories.

The so-called fixed amounts for certain drugs with the active ingredients ibuprofen and paracetamol and for antibiotics are to be suspended for three months from February 1st.

At the same time, however, it is emphasized: "Allowing the pharmaceutical industry to raise prices in the short term is not a sustainable solution."