Each year, dozens of new medicines are added to Lithuania’s reimbursable list, ensuring patients receive modern treatments. Faster inclusion is enabled by quicker evaluations and more efficient use of the Compulsory Health Insurance Fund (CHIF), improving access to innovative care.
The List of Reimbursable Medicines in Lithuania is continuously updated to ensure that patients gain faster access to innovative treatments with additional therapeutic benefits. Strengthening health technology assessment capacity has significantly improved the evaluation process, allowing faster inclusion of new medicines.
“Last year, the number of recommendations for new medicines more than doubled due to our enhanced evaluation capacity. Additionally, the new pricing mechanism allows for more rational use of the Compulsory Health Insurance Fund (CHIF), ensuring savings are redirected to new medicine reimbursements and expanding patient eligibility,”
says Aurimas Pečkauskas, Deputy Minister of Health.
In 2023, 22 new medicines were added to the list, providing treatment for depression, multiple sclerosis, hereditary angioedema, various cancers (breast, lung, liver, blood), rheumatoid arthritis, atopic dermatitis, narcolepsy, infertility, and spinal muscular atrophy.
This year, 19 new medicines have been introduced for patients with ankylosing spondylitis, heart failure, multiple cancers (ovarian, fallopian tube, peritoneal, prostate, lung, blood, breast, head and neck), chronic fibrotic lung and kidney diseases, HIV, and hepatitis C.
Additionally, on June 6, 2024, the Commission for Medicinal Products and Medical Devices approved the transfer of four medicines from the Reserve List to the List of Reimbursable Diseases and Treatments (List A). If approved, starting August 1, reimbursement will begin for medicines treating cystic fibrosis, acute myeloid leukemia, prostate cancer, and metastatic urothelial carcinoma, once agreements on treatment access and risk-sharing are finalized with the State Patients’ Fund.
The State Medicines Control Agency has drastically increased its capacity to assess reimbursement applications. In 2022, 25 applications were evaluated, while in 2023, this number surged to 65, demonstrating Lithuania’s commitment to accelerating patient access to modern treatments.
Currently, 1.24 million people in Lithuania benefit from reimbursed medicines. Of these, around 40% receive full reimbursement, primarily benefiting vulnerable patient groups who would otherwise face significant financial burdens.
To further reduce financial strain, Lithuania has implemented a “patient premium basket”, capping annual medicine co-payments at €48.33 per patient this year. These measures have significantly lowered out-of-pocket expenses.
- In 2017, the average co-payment per prescription was €5—by 2023, it had dropped to €3.17.
- Patient spending on co-payments fell from €54.2 million in 2017 to €19.8 million in 2023, a €34 million reduction over five years.
The Compulsory Health Insurance Fund (CHIF) has nearly doubled its spending on reimbursed medicines and pharmacological therapeutic procedures (PPPs), increasing from €250 million in 2018 to €491 million in 2023.
For 2024, the budget allocation for reimbursed medicines and PPPs is set at €509 million, ensuring further expansion of accessible treatments for Lithuanian patients.
