Generic pharmaceuticals

Lægemidler på sygehusapotek

Photographer: Anne-Li Engström

Amgros’ core responsibility is to ensure fair competition in pharmaceuticals. When a drug’s patent expires and generic or biosimilar alternatives enter the market, Amgros fulfils this responsibility through procurement processes. In this way, we help ensure that the Danish public healthcare system receives the right medicines at a reasonable price.

In practice, we carry out this task by planning and conducting tenders for pharmaceuticals on behalf of the regions. This is done both to meet hospital needs and to create the best possible conditions for suppliers in the Danish market.

Generic medicines are legal copies of the original drug, produced after the patent has expired. Generic medicines contain the same active ingredient as the original drug.

A biological medicine is derived from a living organism. A biosimilar medicine is a biological medicine that is highly similar to an existing biological medicine (the “reference medicine”). Biosimilars are not the same as generic medicines. Read more at pro.medicin.dk.

TENDERING PROCEDURE

All of our tenders are governed by the EU Procurement Directive and the Danish Public Procurement Act. The EU threshold for goods contracts is approximately DKK 1.6 million. To ensure competitive pricing, Amgros follows a principle of tendering all purchases that exceed a total value of DKK 800,000.

We aim to establish agreements with a duration of one year, with the possibility of extension. Half of our agreements enter into force on 1 April and expire on 31 March the following year. The other half of our agreements follow the processes of the Danish Medicines Council.

AMGROS’ TENDERING SYSTEM

Suppliers submit bids for pharmaceuticals through Amgros’ electronic tendering system. Together with the tender documents, the system integrates the legal requirements for public procurement procedures. This ensures transparency and equal treatment for suppliers.

The tendering system provides easy and quick access to all information about the tenders, including deadlines and more. All questions from suppliers, as well as Amgros’ responses, are published on the tendering system’s website. We ensure that all enquiries are anonymous.

There is therefore only one place where suppliers need to submit bids and stay informed about ongoing tenders, as well as questions and answers related to the tenders.

All information from suppliers is submitted to Amgros via a secure internet connection, providing assurance for all parties.

Amgros only gains access to the submitted bids after the tender deadline has expired.

Use this page to set up a user profile on Amgros’ Supplier and Tendering Portal.

OPTIMISATION OF TENDERING PROCEDURES

We maintain an ongoing dialogue with both individual suppliers and industry associations. Together, we discuss various aspects of our tendering process to continuously optimise it. It is in both our interest and that of our suppliers that tenders comply with legislation and are easy and attractive to participate in.

We have developed a catalogue of the most commonly used types of agreements. The catalogue is intended to support suppliers in their dialogue with Amgros. It also serves as inspiration for identifying joint solutions that can help ensure the supply of medicines in Denmark in both the short and long term, while keeping a focus on the environment and sustainability.

See the list of types of agreement here (in Danish)

We also train new suppliers in our tendering system. This helps suppliers become familiar with the system and contributes to a smoother tendering process.

Video on tendering procedures

In this video, you can learn more about our tendering processes. The video is 6 minutes and 37 seconds long.

The video explains, among other things, EU requirements for tenders, our tendering principles, framework agreements, award criteria, specific measures to ensure the supply of medicines, and low-value purchases.

The tendering process typically follows an annual cycle. Towards the end of the video, you will gain insight into how the tendering process works in practice (in Danish).

skaermbillede-udbud-af-laegemidler-i-danmark

New pharmaceuticals and negotiations

If a new medicine is to be considered as a standard treatment at Danish public hospitals, the Danish Medicines Council has to assess and recommend it first.

Analogue competition

When the Danish Medicines Council is to assess several pharmaceuticals within the same therapeutic area, it prepares treatment guidelines.

Efficient changes of medicines

Amgros works closely with the regions - hospital pharmacies, pharmaceutical committees and clinical pharmacologists - to ensure that new medicines get into use rapidly as standard treatment at hospitals - and thereby get to patients quickly too. Together, we also ensure that the regions can reap the savings as soon as possible because the medicine will have been through our national tendering procedure.