Apotex feels PBS pinch
April 14, 2016
FOLLOWING months of ongoing,
significant and widespread price
reductions and PBS changes
imposed across the broader
pharmaceutical industry, Apotex
Australia has announced that it will
cease supply of two of its PBS-listed
products.
The PBS delisting date is yet to be
confirmed, and stock will remain
available at wholesalers until
exhausted.
Apotex md Roger Millichamp
says Apotex has been incurring
sustained losses by supplying these
products under current legislated
PBS pricing regimes, with some 68
medicines listed at, or below, ex-manufacturer
price of $2.
Products facing the chop are
Paracetamol/Codeine Tablets
500mg/30mg Blister Pack 20 (early
Q4 2016), Cephalexin Suspension
125mg/5ml Bottle 100ml (midlate
Q4 2016) and Cephalexin
Suspension 250mg/5ml Bottle
100ml (mid-late Q4 2016).
Millichamp said although it was a
tough decision to make, the impact
of legislated pricing reform has
resulted in significant losses for
some Apotex-supplied products,
losses which cannot be sustained.
As a major generic manufacturer,
the company has said it will
continue to be an active contributor
to the Generic Medicines Working
Group (GMWG) and its discussions
with Government, and is working
with its customers to allow
them to make alternative supply
arrangements.
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