Biological medicines for inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, will now be reimbursed by the State, even when prescribed by gastroenterologists in the private health sector. This is a measure applauded by the Portuguese Society of Gastroenterology (SPG), as it allows patients to increase access to this type of treatment. Until now, only gastroenterologists from the Unified Health System could prescribe these medicines, a situation that was changed with a decree from the Ministry of Health published in October, which determines that biological medicines intended for the treatment of dermatological, rheumatological and gastroenterological autoimmune diseases now benefit from a single exceptional co-participation regime. 7 years ago, patients with inflammatory bowel diseases and their gastroenterologists complained that biological medicines could also be prescribed by private specialists, like what is already happening in the areas of dermatology and rheumatology. Since 2017 there had been “a situation of inequality” which, “fortunately, after several movements by associations and the Portuguese Society of Gastroenterology (SPG)” ended with the revocation of that year’s ordinance, the director of Gastroenterology at Hospital da Luz told Lusa Lisbon, Marília Cravo. “As of the end of November, we can say that gastroenterology patients are on an equal footing with rheumatology and dermatology patients”, highlighted Marilia Cravo, also vice-president of that medical society. With this measure, experts hope that there will be better and greater access for these patients to treatments, which almost always result in a better prognosis. In fact, results presented at the European Gastroenterology Week show that patients who begin therapy with biological medicines two weeks after diagnosis, “after one year, do not present complications and serious forms of disease, compared to those in whom the treatment is delayed”, explains Marília Cravo. The gastroenterologist at Hospital da Luz Lisboa, Joana Torres, told the Lusa agency that specialists verified that patients were receiving the diagnosis in a timely manner in private hospitals such as HLL, but then had great difficulty transitioning to the public service , to have access to these treatments. He explained that patients who live between Lisbon and the Algarve, where “there are few specialists in this area”, and in other regions, such as Torres Vedras or Santarém, “are referred by their family doctor to central hospitals in Lisbon, but then, with the It takes time to get to a specialist appointment, the disease only gets worse.” And he reported: “When we see a patient here with constant diarrhea, waiting months to start treatment, the specialist at the private hospital could only prescribe corticosteroids, a more toxic treatment, but, in this context, the only one that can be offered to a patient. sick". “It is an effective treatment, but it has to be for short periods of time until the patient is transitioned to something more effective”, he explained. Both explained that the incidence of these diseases is increasing in Portugal, reaching incidence rates like those in Northern European countries, where there are the highest rates of inflammatory bowel diseases. More about: Inflammatory bowel disease | Hospital da Luz
