Minister of Health Adonis Georgiadis is focusing on three measures to end the suffering of insured patients at EOPYY pharmacies, following the Tuesday morning incident where a locksmith had to be called to open the pharmacy on Alexandras Avenue.

These measures include the distribution of certain high-cost medicines at neighborhood pharmacies, the immediate hiring of additional pharmacists for EOPYY pharmacies, and the expansion of home delivery services for medicines, which has been piloted since last year, as revealed to the Athens-Macedonian News Agency (AMNA).

Specifically, the Minister of Health emphasized his personal commitment to preventing a repeat of the unacceptable incident at the EOPYY pharmacy on Alexandras Avenue. “I want to sincerely apologize to the people who suffered needlessly today, and to all insured individuals who endure the daily ordeal of waiting in line at EOPYY pharmacies to receive their medication,” the minister stated.

Discussing the solutions he is considering comprehensively, Georgiadis revealed that he has already drafted a plan to halve the waiting lines, with official announcements to follow in the coming days.

“As is well-known, EOPYY pharmacies dispense what are referred to as high-cost medicines (HCM). These are very expensive treatments for serious chronic illnesses such as cancer, multiple sclerosis, and others—medications that patients cannot obtain from their neighborhood pharmacies. One of the scenarios we are considering is collaboration between EOPYY pharmacies and neighborhood pharmacies. However, this legislative adjustment will not apply to all medications but will clarify which drugs will be accessible to patients at pharmacies and which diseases they pertain to, building on the model that functioned during the pandemic,” the Minister of Health disclosed to AMNA.

“All my efforts during my tenure as Minister of Health have been focused on making life easier for my fellow citizens,” he emphasized, adding, “I have never tried to sweep problems under the rug, and I won’t start now. On the contrary, I am here to find solutions and put an end to this suffering for the public.”

A key priority for the ministry and the central axis of this initiative is to better serve patients and their caregivers, he continued, emphasizing that “we will proceed with additional pharmacist recruitments for EOPYY, while the tender for the direct delivery of medicines to patients’ homes is already underway. Since March 2024, the pilot distribution has been running for patients with cystic fibrosis, pulmonary hypertension, thalassemia (Mediterranean anemia), sickle cell anemia, and motor neuron disease, and by 2025, it will expand to include even more insured individuals.”

Earlier that morning, as the minister himself revealed in an interview with ERT, a patient he personally knew called him, saying: “Minister, what is happening at the EOPYY pharmacy on Alexandras Avenue is unacceptable. I’ve been waiting here for a long time.”

“The EOPYY vice president, Mr. Zamanis, the general director, Ms. Litsa, and other associates immediately went to the scene. However, another issue arose: the pharmacy’s door was locked, and the keys were with employees who were absent. We were forced to bring in a locksmith to unlock the door,” said Mr. Georgiadis.

“After our intervention, we collected the patients’ prescriptions and began the service process. While we waited, we offered coffee to the citizens standing in line, though, of course, this does not negate the inconvenience they experienced,” he added.

The incident, he noted, will be fully investigated. It is highly irregular for three employees to be absent simultaneously without notice. Responsibilities will be examined, and, if necessary, the appropriate penalties will be imposed.

“What happened was disgraceful and unacceptable. I went to the scene personally to show that I understand the severity of the problem. However, the solution lies not only in immediate interventions but in creating an effective system,” the Minister of Health said earlier in the day.

At the same time, the Panhellenic Pharmaceutical Association (PFS) issued a statement emphasizing that “in light of the public’s suffering at EOPYY pharmacies, today’s unprecedented action by the Minister of Health underscores the magnitude of the problem, which has now reached proportions that necessitate and mandate a solution—a point the Panhellenic Pharmaceutical Association has repeatedly highlighted.”

The PFS stressed that the hardship faced by these vulnerable groups, who are in absolute need of their medication, cannot be resolved under the existing framework for the distribution of these drugs through EOPYY pharmacies. Instead, the extensive network of 11,000 pharmacies, uniformly distributed across the country, must be utilized.

“Finally, the government’s positions and declarations about ‘High-Cost Medicines from Neighborhood Pharmacies,’ aimed at sparing vulnerable patient groups from unnecessary suffering, must become a reality without delay.

What must take precedence, above all else, is the protection and safeguarding of patients’ dignity,” the statement concluded.