New Essential Drug List Protects Domestic Production

The Government of Sarajevo Canton adopted the Decision on the positive, hospital and magistral drug list, which is a legal obligation in accordance with the federal Decision on the list of drugs of mandatory health insurance and the Decision on the list of drugs in hospital health care, which define the assortments and prices of drugs used in the provision of health care. The adopted cantonal A list of drugs is harmonized with the Federal list as a generic list, while the cantonal list defines lists by manufacturer name.

This year's A List of drugs in Sarajevo Canton, the so-called Essential List, includes 153 drugs in 605 forms and packages. What distinguishes it from previous lists is that all drugs on this list are products of domestic manufacturers. The domestic pharmaceutical companies Hemofarm, Amsal, Bosnalijek, Zada and Farmavita have been joined by the so-called originator drugs, i.e., the original license holders of the drug.

By adopting such a list, which was prepared by the expert cantonal Commission for Drugs in cooperation with health institutions and expressed needs, the Government also complied with the conclusion of the Sarajevo Canton Assembly, which requested that domestic pharmaceutical companies be represented as much as possible in the creation of the essential drug list. In this way, as emphasized today, drug control is easier and domestic production is protected, which is the practice of countries in the region and beyond.

The adopted B list of drugs covers drugs desirable in treatment therapies, and is co-financed from health insurance funds at rates from 10 to 100 percent. The hospital list includes drugs exclusively for hospital treatment. After being published in the Official Gazette of Sarajevo Canton, the integral Essential Drug List will be available on the website of the Ministry of Health of Sarajevo Canton.