- Policy
- "Overseas transfer of KOR genomic data by China's Novogene"
- by Lee, Jeong-Hwan Oct 16, 2025 06:20am
- Rep. Lee Ju-young of the Reform Party pointed out an issue regarding Novogene, a Chinese genomics analysis company that established a branch in Korea, that the company has no genetic analysis equipment in Korea. Rep. Lee's concern is that Novogene's holding company, BGI, was globally reported in 2021 for allegedly collecting and sharing g
- Policy
- New Divisions for Essential & Public Healthcare proposed
- by Lee, Jeong-Hwan Oct 15, 2025 06:11am
- The Ministry of Health and Welfare has decided to establish a new director-level organization, the ‘Regional, Essential, and Public Healthcare Policy Office,’ to ensure the success of the Lee Jae-myung administration's national policy task of people-focused healthcare reform. It has been confirmed that this request has been submitted to th
- Policy
- Gov't to unveil New drugs·Generic Drug Pricing System Rev.
- by Lee, Jeong-Hwan Oct 14, 2025 06:40am
- The Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW) has announced plans to release the drug pricing system revision next month (November), including both new drugs and generics. It is drawing the attention of Korean and international pharmaceutical companies. The MOHW plans to disclose the timing of the re-evaluation of reimbursement appropriatene
- Policy
- No companies apply for domestic API pricing premium
- by Lee, Jeong-Hwan Oct 13, 2025 06:07am
- Although the Ministry of Health and Welfare has implemented a policy since March this year offering a 68% pricing premium on essential medicines made with domestic APIs, it has been confirmed that as of October&8212;7 months after implementation&8212;not a single pharmaceutical company has benefited. Criticism is mounting that the Minis
- Policy
- Demands for expanded reimbursement for NMOSD
- by Jung, Heung-Jun Oct 13, 2025 06:02am
- The demand to improve reimbursement to enhance treatment accessibility for Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder (NMOSD) is anticipated to heat up again in this year's parliamentary inspection. During the parliamentary inspection of the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service (HIRA), on October 17, a NMOSD will attend as a testifier,
- Policy
- Ozempic nears reimb approval…next is Mounjaro
- by Jung, Heung-Jun Oct 13, 2025 06:02am
- With Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 injectable Ozempic (semaglutide) deemed adequate for reimbursement for diabetes, attention is now turning to whether Eli Lilly’s Mounjaro (tirzepatide) will be reviewed next by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA). At the same time, voices are growing in favor of extending insurance coverag
- Policy
- 'Low-price purchase incentive ineffective and detrimental'
- by Lee, Jeong-Hwan Oct 10, 2025 06:05am
- There is growing criticism that the government’s low-price drug purchase incentive policy should be overhauled due to its structural contradictions and low effectiveness. The low-price purchase incentive, which is linked to the market-based actual transaction price reduction system, focuses on price rather than quality. From the pharmace
- Policy
- GLP-1 drug Ozempic passes reimbursement review
- by Jung, Heung-Jun Oct 10, 2025 06:05am
- Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 receptor agonist Ozempic (semaglutide) has passed review by the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service (HIRA)’s Drug Reimbursement Evaluation Committee, which acknowledged the drug as adequate for reimbursement. Ozempic contains the same active ingredient as the obesity drug Wegovy, but is indicated for diabetes.
- Policy
- "Why are pharma developing salt changes called innovative?"
- by Lee, Jeong-Hwan Oct 1, 2025 06:10am
- "There are no developed countries that provide public funds and National Health Insurance resources to pharmaceutical companies for simply changing salt formation. South Korea is the only country in the world that recognizes incrementally modified drugs as having the value of innovative new drugs. (If we want to call incrementally modified d
- Policy
- First lot of returning nasal spray flu vaccine approved
- by Lee, Tak-Sun Sep 30, 2025 06:12am
- The nasal spray flu vaccine ‘FluMist Intranasal Spray (AstraZeneca Korea)’ has received shipment approval from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety (MFDS) and is preparing for sales. This product was previously sold by GC Biopharma, but it did not gain significant popularity at the time. With expected demand from children who dislike inj
