There are many drugs with the same composition, quality and efficacy in the German market, but the prices are different. For such drugs, the medical insurance fund usually sets a fixed reference price. If the drug price exceeds the reference price, the insured has two choices: pay the excess or buy other drugs with the same curative effect. Yang Guo found that, in practice, policyholders are generally unwilling to pay exorbitant drug fees themselves, and pharmaceutical companies rarely provide drugs with prices exceeding the upper limit.
Drugs on the German market can be divided into patented drugs and generic drugs. New drugs are protected by patents, allowing free pricing. After the expiration of patent protection, companies that produce generic drugs have appeared constantly, and the price of drugs has also dropped. According to the regulations, if the doctor does not prescribe a specific drug, but only indicates an effective ingredient, then the pharmacy staff is obliged to sell a generic drug with the same curative effect and low price to consumers.
The phenomenon that doctors take kickbacks from pharmaceutical companies also exists in Germany, but it is not common. Yang Guo's explanation from a pharmacy in Berlin is: First of all, pharmacies mainly sell drugs that the medical insurance fund has reached an agreement with pharmaceutical companies, and doctors have limited influence; In addition, if a doctor often prescribes too many drugs for patients, the medical insurance foundation finds out from statistics that the doctor is required to pay the corresponding losses.