Salzburg to review medication billing by Barmherzige Brüder hospital

The state of Salzburg will review its billing arrangements with the Barmherzige Brüder hospital, ORF reports. Media reports say a pharmacy and subsequently the hospital charged the state of Styria mark-ups of more than 1,200 percent on some medicines.

A report by the Styrian Health Fund recently raised serious allegations against the hospital and the Barmherzige Brüder pharmacy in Annenstraße in Graz. According to the report, the pharmacy charged the hospital mark-ups of more than 1,000 percent on certain medicine deliveries over several years, amounting to more than ten times the purchase price.

The hospital then reportedly passed the additional costs on to the state through the so-called deficit coverage system, claiming millions of euros in extra taxpayer funding over an extended period.

The Barmherzige Brüder have assured Salzburg that the practice occurred only in Styria, according to the state government. Salzburg nevertheless plans to examine the matter more closely in the coming weeks.

The health facility in Salzburg does not have its own pharmacy through which medicines are billed. It is supplied through the Barmherzige Brüder pharmacy in Linz.