Quarterly Netherlands Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report – Q3 2008

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/1ab86e/netherlands_pharma) has announced the addition of the "Netherlands Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q3 2008" report to their offering.

BMI’s Netherlands Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report provides independent forecasts and competitive intelligence on Netherlands’ pharmaceuticals and healthcare industry.

The most significant event in the Netherlands Pharmaceutical industry this quarter was the introduction of a preferential price policy for generic medicines. Taking effect on June 1 2008, health insurers will only reimburse the cheapest of 36 commonly used drugs. The closed bidding system is likely to cause a significant reduction in medicines prices and therefore will have a severe impact on the generics market, particularly if insurers fully implement the pricing policy. At present, It is set to cover half of the market. The policy has come as a result of the Pharmaceutical Care Transition Agreement 2008/2009 which in Q108 had already led to a 10% reduction in generics prices and up to 50% of medicines with patent expiries pending. Price drops are likely to have financial impacts for companies throughout the supply chain, from manufacturers through to pharmacies.

Other significant events include the publication of a report in May 2008 that highlighted a rapid increase in the number of people defaulting on health insurance; up 26% in 2007. This is a worrying sign for the drug market as it will likely lead to shortfalls in health budgets and also represents the large financial debts people have which will possibly affect over-the-counter (OTC) drug spending. On a more positive note the number of people with no health insurance has decreased by 10,000 to 231,000. In April 2008 the Dutch government announced that the cost of premium treatments will no longer be tax deductible from January 2009. At present, taxpayers can deduct costs of high-price pharmaceuticals that are not being covered by their health insurance if they exceed a certain proportion of an individual’s salary.

BMI’s Burden of Disease Database (BoDD) has shown the Netherlands to be the 7th least disease burdened country in Western Europe. Neuropsychiatric conditions, cancer and cardiovascular diseases are the diseases to be the most burdensome in the country, a statistic set to stay that way for the full forecast period until 2030.

In a positive move for cancer prevention, the Dutch Health Council recommended that human papillomavirus vaccinations be included in the national immunisation programme. This is likely to lead to a battle between GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi-Pasteur MSD to establish their vaccines as the number one preference.

Company-wise there was plenty of activity for local players. The highlights included DSM acquiring Polymer Technology Group (PTG) and posting impressive sales growth, while wholesaler OPG announced plans to expand into Poland. In addition, nine research projects in the Netherlands are set to receive EUR 150mn from the Centre for Translational Molecular Medicine (CTMM) in an attempt to improve knowledge of disease development.

Key Topics Covered:

- Executive Summary

- Netherlands Pharmaceuticals And Healthcare Industry SWOT

- Netherlands Political SWOT

- Netherlands Economic SWOT

- Netherlands Political Industry SWOT

- Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings

- Table: Western European Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings

- Limits To Potential Returns

- Risks To Realisation Of Returns

- Market Summary

- Regulatory Regime

- Intellectual Property Developments

- Pricing And Reimbursement

- Industry Developments

- Healthcare Sector

- Healthcare Insurance

- Table: Key Points – Dutch Health Insurance Act, January 1 2006

- Epidemiology

- Table: Disease Burden In Western Europe

- Pharmaceuticals Sector

- Recent Domestic Companies’ Activities

- Recent Foreign Companies’ Activities

- Wholesale And Retail Sector Developments

- Research And Development Sector

- Industry Forecast Scenario

- Overall Market Forecast

- Table: The Netherlands Drug Market Forecast Indicators

- Key Growth Factors – Industry

- Table: Netherlands Health Expenditure Indicators

- Key Growth Factors – Macroeconomic

- Table: Netherlands – Macroeconomic Forecasts

- Prescription Market Forecast

- Table: The Netherlands’ Patented Drug Market Forecast Indicators (US$mn unless otherwise stated)

- Over-The-Counter Market Forecast

- Table: The Netherlands OTC Drugs Market Forecast Indicators (EURmn unless otherwise stated)

- Generics Market Forecast

- Table: The Netherlands’ Generics And Branded Market Forecast Indicators

- Export/Import Forecasts

- Table: The Netherlands’ Pharmaceutical Trade Forecast Indicators (US$bn)

- Key Risks To BMI’s Forecast Scenario

- Competitive Landscape

- Company Profiles

- Leading Multinational Manufacturers

- Merck & Co

- Pfizer

- GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)

- Sanofi-Aventis

- Novartis

- Indigenous Manufacturers

- Akzo Nobel

- DSM

- Qiagen

- Pharming Group

- Crucell

- BMI Forecast Modelling

- How We Generate Our Pharmaceutical Industry Forecasts

- Pharmaceutical Industry

- Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings Methodology

- Ratings Overview

- Table: Pharmaceutical Business Environment Indicators

- Weighting

- Table: Weighting Of Components 7

- Sources

Companies Mentioned:

- Merck & Co

- Pfizer

- GlaxoSmithKline (GSK)

- Sanofi-Aventis

- Novartis

- Akzo Nobel

- DSM

- Qiagen

- Pharming Group

- Crucell

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/1ab86e/netherlands_pharma.