Research and Markets: Slovenia Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q4 2009 - Now Available

DUBLIN-(Business Wire)-September 29, 2009 - Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/ff3d70/slovenia_pharmaceu) has announced the addition of the "Slovenia Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q4 2009" report to their offering.

This Slovenia Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report provides industry professionals and strategists, corporate analysts, pharmaceutical associations, government departments and regulatory bodies with independent forecasts and competitive intelligence on Slovenia's pharmaceuticals and healthcare industry

Slovenia is ranked in 9th position in the publisher's Business Environment Ratings for Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) in Q409, highlighting it as a reasonably attractive investment opportunity for drugmakers. While regionally the country can be considered a relatively safe investment, particularly in light of relatively strong regulations and risk ratings, the market's size somewhat restricts opportunities for returns. Nevertheless high per-capita spending is a bonus for companies selling higher priced products.

Over the next five years BMI forecasts the pharmaceutical market will grow at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.8%. Using BMI's new 10-year forecast model, a longer-term view sees the Slovenian market becoming increasingly mature. Towards the end of the forecast period low single-digit growth rates will become the norm, as high level per-capita spending results in smaller opportunities for increases.

To a notable extent, positive market developments - such as rising healthcare expectations and changing demographic profile - will be offset by government cost-cutting policy. This has been seen most recently in the new health insurance regulations and changes to the reimbursement system, subsidising only the cheapest generics. Additionally, mandatory generic prescribing is a significant brake on the market. Manufacturers will, however, be looking for private healthcare cover to pick up some of the slack, although this is more of a medium- to long-term prospect.

By far the leading source of pharmaceutical imports into Slovenia is Germany, which provided 33.2% of the total in 2008. Austria (14.1%), Switzerland (10.0%), Netherlands (8.6%) and France (6.9%) are the next biggest sources. The country's Western European import base highlights its reliance on foreign sources for patented drugs. Export destinations are dominated by Russia and Poland, which together account for 35.1% of total value in 2008.

BMI's Burden of Disease Database (BoDD) calculates that the number of disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) lost to all diseases and injuries per 10,000 patients in 2008 was 13,880. This makes Slovenia the second least burdened country in CEE, a strong reflection of relatively well-developed healthcare standards in the country. The country spends around 8.2% of GDP on healthcare to manage diseases effectively.

Domestic giant Krka has shown resilience in the face of the economic downturn, with sales up 2% yearon- year (y-o-y) in H109. Profits were down only marginally over the same period. As with many drugmakers, foreign exchange rates - rather than true local demand - have prevented improved performance.

Key Topics Covered:

Executive Summary

SWOT Analysis

Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings