Imagine you have been waiting for years for a medicine that you desperately need. It exists, but you can only get it through a complicated bureaucratic process, and there is no guarantee that the insurance company will agree to pay for it. For thousands of patients in Slovakia, especially those with cancer and rare diseases, this uncertainty will soon be a thing of the past.
The Ministry of Health of Slovakia has announced a significant expansion of the list of medicines covered by state health insurance. This decision, which takes effect from October 1, will open access to modern and innovative drugs for patients who could not afford them before.
What is changing from October 1?
The Ministry of Health has added about 50 new drugs to the official list (the so-called categorization). This means that doctors will be able to prescribe them to patients through the standard procedure, and the cost will be covered by the state insurance company.
Previously, such medicines could mainly be obtained "by exception" (na výnimku). This process required the doctor to submit a special request to the insurance company, which reviewed each case individually and could refuse payment. This caused huge stress for patients and their families, and also delayed the start of treatment.
The new rules remove this bureaucratic barrier, making modern therapy a standard and accessible part of the healthcare system.
What diseases does the new program cover?
The updated list of medicines covers a wide range of serious diseases. Patients in the following areas will benefit most from the changes:
- Oncology and hematology: New drugs are intended for the treatment of multiple myeloma, follicular lymphoma, lung cancer, and breast cancer.
- Neurology: Medicines for patients with multiple sclerosis will become more accessible.
- Rare (orphan) diseases: For the first time, drugs for treating diseases such as acute hepatic porphyria – a rare inherited disease for which there was previously no compensated treatment – have been included in the list.
- Other areas: The expansion also affected rheumatology, dermatology, cardiology, pulmonology, and endocrinology.
This decision will allow the integration of innovative treatment methods, which have already proven their effectiveness worldwide, into medical practice.
Does this apply to Ukrainians in Slovakia?
Yes, these changes also apply to citizens of Ukraine who have received temporary protection (dočasné útočisko) in Slovakia. Along with this status, you automatically become a participant in the public health insurance system (verejné zdravotné poistenie).
This means that you are entitled to the same scope of medical care as Slovak citizens. If your specialist doctor determines that you need one of the new drugs that have been added to the list, the insurance company will cover its cost.
What needs to be done?
If you or your loved ones are undergoing treatment for one of the mentioned diseases, it is worth discussing the new possibilities with your specialist doctor (oncologist, neurologist, hematologist, etc.). They can assess the appropriateness of prescribing new therapy and issue the relevant prescription (Recept).
This update is an important step towards increasing the accessibility and effectiveness of treatment in Slovakia, giving hope to many patients and their families.
