According to the government, the invoice or receipt issued must include information on the sales price to the public, the reference price, if applicable, the percentage of State contribution and the cost borne by the State and the user.

The selling price to the public, as shown in the presentations of the medicines, “does not correspond, as a rule, to the cost of the medicine for the citizen”, states the decree-law, explaining that this cost is influenced “by possible reimbursement” and is dependent, in part, on “the economic condition of the citizen”, particularly in the case of pensioners, and the application of the reference price system to medicines for which there are generics.

In the latter case, “the reimbursement does not apply to the public sale price of the medicine, but to a reference price that varies depending on the medicines available for each active substance and its price”, adds the document, highlighting that mentioning the price on the medicine packaging “provides information that is not very relevant or even difficult to interpret”.

“In addition, the price of medicines is susceptible to change, particularly within the scope of the application of the annual price review rules, which increases the risk of outdated information on the packaging”, states the decree, thus justifying the removal of the information on the prices of medicines on packaging, similar to what happens in most European Union countries.