HSE paying pharmacists full price for discounted drugs

This sounds similar to generic rebates in Canada...

From the Irish Business News:
Pharmacists are being offered discounts of as much as 80 per cent off the list price they invoice the Health Service Executive (HSE) for certain medicines. Discounts of 40, 50 and 60 per cent on bulk purchases by pharmacies were not uncommon.

Documents seen by this newspaper show major discounts being offered to pharmacists on a wide range of some of the most commonly used medicines, including antibiotics, painkillers and anti-cholesterol drugs, by pharmaceutical companies.

A document written by one pharmaceutical company clearly illustrated the potential saving to pharmacists.

It outlined how the pharmacy could invoice the HSE just over €4,000 for a large batch of anti-depressants under an agreed contract with the state, but the pharmacist could avail of discounts enabling it to purchase them for just over €1,000. ...more