Greece
Greece is a sovereign state in southeastern Europe, located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa, with extensive coastlines along the Aegean, Ionian, and Mediterranean Seas. It is administratively divided into 13 regions (peripheries). Greece operates as a parliamentary republic. Greece became a member of the European Union in 1981 and later joined the Eurozone, adopting the euro as its currency on 1 January 2001. As part of the EU and the Eurozone, Greece participates in the Single Market and adheres to EU regulatory and economic frameworks.
Healthcare budget
8,2 € billion
Inhabitants
10,4 million
GDP per capita
$24.626
Currency
EUR (1 EUR = 1 EUR)
World Ranking
GDP 54rd
Greek healthcare
Greece has a universal healthcare system that allows citizens to receive care through both public and private providers. The system is overseen by the Ministry of Health and the National Organization for the Provision of Health Services (EOPYY), which is the main public insurer and purchaser of services, including pharmaceuticals and outpatient care. Public healthcare spending in Greece accounts for around 9.9 % of GDP, slightly below the Western European average of approximately 11 % of GDP. Public expenditure constitutes a majority but not all of total health spending, with a substantial share funded by private out-of-pocket payments and supplementary insurance. Greece’s system combines funding from social insurance contributions, general taxation, and patient co-payments, with ongoing reforms aimed at digital transformation and strengthening primary care and prevention.
Greek Pharmaceutical Environment
Pharmaceutical market in Greece includes both outpatient and inpatient medicines and has shown growth in recent years, with total expenditure increasing to around €7.5 billion in 2023 and an estimated €8.5 billion in 2024. Public pharmaceutical expenditure is a subset of this total, with patients and the pharmaceutical industry making significant contributions through co-payments and mandatory returns (clawback and rebates), often exceeding €4 billion annually.
Domestic pharmaceutical production exists but represents a limited share of total demand. Greece’s market is heavily dependent on imports, while the number of manufacturing enterprises and the proportion of national production vary by segment. The pharmaceutical system has undergone digital modernization, including e-prescription and generic substitution policies, to promote efficiency and cost control, and to encourage use of lower-cost alternatives within the reimbursed market.
The Greek system applies external price referencing based on selected Eurozone countries, while reimbursement decisions are managed through national procedures involving statutory pricing rules and dedicated negotiation committees. Pharmaceuticals are distributed through both public and private channels, including EOPYY pharmacies, hospital procurement systems, and retail pharmacies. Importantly, the system provides specific regulatory and operational pathways that enable the introduction of shortage-critical or innovative medicines addressing unmet medical needs, through emergency, early access, or exceptional-use mechanisms, fully governed by national legislation and public procurement rules. These pathways support timely market entry and patient access for such medicines.
Today’s challenges
Pharmaceutical prices in Greece are among the lowest in the EU, with strict price controls, local reference pricing, and public spending tightly controlled through above-EU-average rebates and clawbacks.
This pricing environment has led to product withdrawals, shortages, and reduced incentives for innovative launches. On top of that, MAHs face additional challenges due to demanding negotiations and slow regulatory procedures. At the same time, structured early access pathways provide a distinct mechanism to address unmet medical needs and supply gaps.
The Expert in Greece
Theodore Kountanis
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We manage, through our logistic partners with their regional warehouses, the distribution to our region (26 countries). They have the capability to handle the most demanding of specialized product order management, storage, handling and distribution requirements.
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Achieving reimbursement and getting the right price are the 2 most important drivers for a successful launch of an innovative pharmaceuticals in our part of Europe. Health Authorities in any European country decide individually based on their local regulations, policies, framework, social values and available health care budget.
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Unlike other regions, in the EU a number of options is available to obtain a marketing authorisation. Centralised at the European Medicines Agency in Amsterdam or decentralised with the individual competent authorities of the member states, each marketing authorisation application procedure has its pros and cons.
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Pharmacovigilance is the science and activities relating to the detection, assessment, understanding and prevention of adverse effects or any other medicine-related problem.
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