Agreement between General Health Insurance Office and haematologists: right treatment to the right patient
The largest health insurance office (VZP) signed agreement with the Czech Society of Haematology (CHS) on a new way of costly therapy reimbursement.
This agreement guarantees that patients with leukaemia and other serious diseases will be provided an adequate health care in specialized treatment centres within selected hospitals. In 2007, the General Health Insurance Office will provide between 650 and 950 million CZK for the reimbursement of drugs used in the therapy of these diseases.
"The agreement with CHS guarantees to all persons insured at VZP (i.e., the majority of Czech population) that in case of malignant haematopoietic disease, the insurance office will reimburse an adequate therapy to all patients who would need it - including the therapy with costly drugs, which had not been fully available in the Czech health care system under previous conditions," said Pavel Horak, Director-General of the VZP. The overall therapy cost for a single patient can reach up to 900 000 CZK per year.
The therapy of haemato-oncological and heamatological patients is narrowly specialized and very demanding both technologically and financially. "Our objective is to reach an effective and targeted therapy, which is aimed specifically at cancer cells, but causes a minimal damage to other tissues. The targeted therapy by expensive drugs significantly enhances the treatment effectiveness, which results into a major prolongation and quality improvement of patient's life, " said Assoc. Prof. Jaroslav Cermak, MD, President of the Czech Society of Haematology and Head of Inpatient Department at the Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion (IHBT).
Depending on the diagnosis, there are hundreds of Czech patients every year who would need this type of therapy. "The number of VZP-insured patients, who would need the costly therapy this year, has been estimated to almost 2,000. For the year 2007, we have allocated almost one billion CZK for the reimbursement of specialized medicinal products, which are provided only in selected centres," specified Pavel Horak.
According to the agreement, the Centres of Intensive and Specialized Haematology Care (CIHC) will guarantee the treatment of adult patients. Paediatric patients will be treated in the Centres of Paediatric Haematology Care (CPHC), i.e. specialized paediatric centres in selected hospitals. These centres must fulfil selection criteria determined by the Czech Society of Haematology, which involve professional, technical and personal parameters, and conclude a special agreement with the VZP for the reimbursement of expensive drugs.
Centres of Intensive and Specialized Haematology Care (CIHC) [for adults]:
- Institute of Haematology and Blood Transfusion (Prague)
- First Department of Internal Medicine at the General University Hospital in Prague
- Department of Clinical Haematology at the University Hospital Kralovske Vinohrady (Prague)
- Department of Hematology and Oncology at the University Hospital Plzen
- Second Department of Internal Medicine - Department of Clinical Haematology at the University Hospital Hradec Kralove
- Department of Internal Medicine - Hematology and Oncology at the University Hospital Brno
- Department of Hematology and Oncology at the University Hospital Olomouc
Centres of Paediatric Haematology Care (CPHC) [for children]:
- Department of Paediatric Haematology and Oncology at the University Hospital in Motol (Prague)
- Department of Paediatrics at the Hospital and Health Centre Ceske Budejovice
- Department of Paediatrics at the University Hospital Plzen
- Department of Paediatrics at the Masaryk Hospital Usti nad Labem
- Department of Paediatrics at the University Hospital Hradec Kralove
- Department of Paaediatric Oncology at the University Hospital Brno
- Department of Paediatrics at the University Hospital Olomouc
- Department of Paediatrics at the University Hospital Ostrava
13. 8. 2007 Administrator
