Hungary to shift costly rare-disease drug funding to national insurer and involve hospitals
A bill approved by the Health Committee would move decisions on expensive rare-disease treatments from the Batthyány-Strattmann László Foundation to the National Health Insurance Fund, with hospitals potentially sharing costs.
Lawmakers passed a health-committee proposal that would relocate the financing decisions for rare and costly therapies from the Batthyány-Strattmann László Foundation to the National Health Insurance Fund (NEAK). The draft stipulates that a patient’s access to individually subsidised treatment may be influenced by the drug’s price, the hospital’s financial situation and the physician’s recommendation. NEAK would be able to fund medicines not yet listed in the standard reimbursement catalogue on a case-by-case basis.
Hospitals could be required to pre-commit to contributing to costs, but would only pay if NEAK’s spending on such individual supports exceeds its budgeted amount. The legislation also seeks to modify the rules for regular inclusion of drugs in the social-insurance system, allowing earlier access to new or previously unsupported medicines. Health Minister Hegedűs Zsolt announced the reform, with implementation potentially beginning in August. The bill also proposes restructuring the National Health Insurance Fund’s payment office into a value-based, patient-centred purchasing entity.
Why it matters
It could reshape how Hungary funds high-cost medicines, affecting patient access and hospital budgets.
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