Drug costs for the General Medical Services scheme are set to exceed 2002 estimates by 30 per cent - drug payments for medical card patients in the GMS cost €329 million in 2001.
In a further blow to Government finances, it has been confirmed that the drug payment scheme, designed to benefit patients without medical cards, is also set to exceed its budget by almost one-third.
The large overruns in medication costs paid for by the State has led to the appointment of consultants, who have been asked to report to the Minister for Health, Mr Martin, by the end of this month.
They are to look at "the way we organise drug payments in the GMS and DPS schemes", Mr Martin confirmed to The Irish Times.
Even allowing for inflation and the increase due to the broadening of medical card eligibility to people over 70, the cost of GMS drugs for 2002 would be at least 30 per cent overbudget, he said.
The drug payment scheme is designed to benefit those who are faced with large drug bills. No individual or family has to pay more than €65 a month for prescribed medicines. Some 1.15 million people availed of the scheme at a cost of €177.6 million in 2001.
Asked why drug costs had increased so dramatically, Mr Martin blamed "both the increased consumption and the increased cost of drugs". There had also been a higher number of claimants - in a controversial move, the Government increased the eligibility threshold to €65 in August. Acknowledging that there would be a "deceleration in growth" rather than cutbacks in the health services next year, Mr Martin said the amount of deceleration would not be clarified until budget estimates were completed.