A recent Ministerial Decision (Government Gazette B’ 6333/27.11.2025) introduces significant changes to the distribution of High-Cost Medicines (HCM), allowing patients to receive these medicines not only from EOPYY pharmacies but also from private community pharmacies. This new framework replaces the 2020 regulation and aims to ease patient access, reduce inconvenience, and improve the delivery of essential therapies.
The list of HCM medicines included in this process is available in the corresponding Government Gazette here.
What Changes for Patients
- The prescribing physician issues the prescription through the national e-prescription system (IDIKA).
- Patients may choose to receive their medicine either from an EOPYY pharmacy or a private community pharmacy.
- Through the dedicated HCM application (using Taxisnet credentials + AMKA), patients select the private pharmacy that will serve them.
- Patients receive electronic notifications regarding the status of their order and the availability of the medicine for pickup.
- Medicines are dispensed with zero patient co-payment.
- The time from approval to pickup may not exceed 10 days.
What Changes for Private Pharmacies
Private pharmacists now assume an expanded role in handling High-Cost Medicines, with specific responsibilities and procedures.
- Medicine Receipt
- The pharmacist scans the product’s barcode in the EOPYY system to complete the warehouse reconciliation process for EOPYY’s pharmaceutical depot.
- The patient is automatically notified via the system once the medicine arrives at the pharmacy.
- Prescription Verification and Dispensing
The pharmacist must verify:
- the patient’s identity or the presence of a valid authorization,
- the accuracy of the prescription and its alignment with the prescribing physician’s instructions,
- the correct medicinal product,
- the presence of any required supporting documents,
- the authenticity labels or deactivated safety features,
- the physician’s signature and the recipient’s signature.
The pharmacist then signs and stamps the prescription to complete the dispensing process.
Failure to comply with these procedures may lead to sanctions under Presidential Decree 121/2008.
- Pharmacist Remuneration
For each dispensed HCM prescription, pharmacists receive:
- a scientific service fee of €20.00 + VAT,
without the need to issue transport documents.
This cost is not included in the total pharmaceutical expenditure ceiling of EOPYY.
- Monthly Submission of Prescriptions
Every month, pharmacists must send:
- the dispensed prescriptions,
- the consolidated report,
- and the service invoice
to the EOPYY Department of Prescription Processing and Review.
Electronic images of prescriptions remain available for audit.
- Unexecuted Prescriptions
If a prescription is not executed:
- the medicine is returned to the pharmaceutical company after 5 days,
- and the company issues a credit invoice to EOPYY.
- Loss or Damage of Medicines
If the medicine is lost or damaged due to pharmacist responsibility,
EOPYY charges the pharmacist the procurement value of the product.
Why This Change Matters
The updated system:
- reduces patient inconvenience,
- relieves congestion in EOPYY pharmacies,
- ensures faster access to essential therapies,
- strengthens the role of community pharmacists,
- and modernizes the distribution of High-Cost Medicines.
This development significantly improves the daily lives of patients who rely on regular access to specialized treatments — including many oncology patients. KAPA3 continues to stand by cancer patients and their families, offering reliable guidance and practical support so that every patient feels safe and fully informed about their rights and benefits.
Text/Adaptation: Ifiyenia Anastasiou for Kapa3