Roche boss calls for new clarity for the pharmaceutical industry in Germany!

Roche boss calls for new clarity for the pharmaceutical industry in Germany!

On July 24, 2025, Dr. Daniel Steiners, head of Roche in Germany, expressed his positive views on the new federal government's efforts to promote the pharmaceutical industry. He placed particular emphasis on the need for more openness to innovation and a welcoming culture for new developments. Loud Doctor's newspaper Steiner is of the opinion that health policy also includes industrial and economic policy, which is particularly clear in the context of the ongoing pharmaceutical dialogue.

Steiners described the medical research and health data use law of the previous government as a significant step forward for the industry. But despite these positive developments, Roche and other companies have filed a complaint against the Statutory Health Insurance Financial Stabilization Act with the Federal Constitutional Court. This law, passed in October 2022, is intended to limit statutory health insurance (GKV) expenses and increase revenue. It includes crucial measures affecting drug prices, including an extension of the price moratorium until the end of 2026 and an increase in the manufacturer's rebate by five percentage points for 2023.

Federal Constitutional Court rejects complaints

This was decided on July 16, 2025 Federal Constitutional Court in several constitutional complaints filed by pharmaceutical entrepreneurs against the Statutory Health Insurance Financial Stabilization Act. These women entrepreneurs criticized the drug price regulation measures, which they viewed as a violation of their professional freedom. But the court rejected the complaints as unfounded and found that the regulations on the stability of the statutory health insurance were justified.

The focus of the criticism was several regulations: the manufacturer's discount of 12 percent on the retail prices of medicines, the extension of the price moratorium until December 31, 2026 and a tightening of the regulations on reimbursement amounts for new patent-protected medicines. The court emphasized that these measures will help achieve savings of around one billion euros to ensure the financial stability of the GKV.

The need for clarity and stability

Dr. Steiners appeals to politicians for clarity and reliable framework conditions in the pharmaceutical industry. He explains that rising drug prices are due to the need to afford medical advances, especially with the emergence of new technologies such as artificial intelligence. However, the impact of these technologies on drug prices remains unclear. Roche invests almost three billion Swiss francs annually in IT and digitalization projects to promote research and development through the use of AI.

Overall, the debate about the GKV Financial Stabilization Act casts a shadow on the prospects of the pharmaceutical industry in Germany. Nevertheless, the hope remains that a dialogue between politics and industry will lead to a reliable framework for companies and promote innovation.