A 2011 law overhauling the German pharmaceutical industry will be the biggest impediment to growth in the sector over the next several years, according to a new report.
GlobalData analysts expect Germany’s drug market to climb modestly from $58.6 billion in 2014 to $65 billion by 2020.
Although Germany is Europe’s largest pharmaceutical market — including high levels of both health care spending and pharmaceutical production — efforts to slow drug spending within the public health sector could affect future growth. The 2011 law, in part, fixed a maximum reimbursement limit on certain treatments.
“Before the enactment of AMNOG in Germany, there were far fewer limitations to the pricing of new or patented products, which was itself a key driver of rising drug expenditure,” said GlobalData Director of Healthcare Industry Dynamics Joshua Owide.
Government-imposed price freezes, a large generic market and the exclusion of some drug categories from public insurance reimbursement are also expected to affect the market.
