Greece Piles on Debt to Reach Deal on Medical Supplies for Hospitals

On Tuesday, Greece's debt-ridden government was able to conclude a deal on payments to medical suppliers, a minister confirmed. This could potentially end the dispute that unions warned could put patients' lives at risk.

"We proposed today and there was an agreement in principle on the pay-off of state debt to providers," Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou said.

Threat of Health Supply Freeze High in Debt-Hit Greece
A government compromise plan to repay billions of euros owed for equipment and medicine purchases has been rejected by providers forcing Greece's debt-plagued state hospitals to face a supply embargo.

The deal will go to parliament this week and comes a day after Moody's slashed its sovereign rating for Greece to "junk" status on concerns about how Athens can repay its debts.

A meeting with providers on Monday had failed to reach a settlement, raising the possibility of critical shortages at Greek hospitals since suppliers had frozen deliveries over the debt, which dates to 2005.

Health Minister Marilyza Xenogiannakopoulou accused medical goods suppliers of "blackmail" as the government seeks to end years of waste and fraud in the hospital sector.

Drug Giant Pulls Insulin Products From Greece Over Price Cut Row
Danish pharmaceutical group Novo Nordisk said Saturday it was pulling 17 types of medication for treating diabetes from the Greek market following a government decree to lower prices of drugs.

Unions called for an immediate settlement to avoid putting patients' lives at risk, with a wide range of goods from cotton to pacemakers affected.

Under the deal reached on Tuesday, the government will pay a total of 490 million euros (604 million dollars) for 2005 and 2006. It had already paid 1.2 billion euros in December for those two years and a part of 2007.

Danish Company Restarts Sales of Diabetes Drugs in Greece
Danish pharmaceutical group Novo Nordisk said Monday it was reintroducing in Greece drugs for treating diabetes it had pulled from the Greek market over a government decree to lower drug prices.

Debt for 2007, 2008 and 2009 will be covered by issuing treasury bonds worth 5.35 billion euros.

The government has also committed to paying 100 million euros -- or 200,000 euros for each company involved -- because of "several firms' treasury difficulties due to late payments," said Papaconstantinou.

Greece Announces New Plans to Ban Smoking
The Greek government took advantage of World No Smoking Day Monday to announce new plans to ban smoking in public places, although Greeks have proved resistant to previous crackdowns.

Greece's government is struggling under a mountain of debt and has been granted a 110-billion-euro rescue deal by the European Union and International Monetary Fund.

The crisis in Greece spilled over into other weaker eurozone countries such as Spain and Portugal, with Brussels and the IMF agreeing a one trillion dollar backstop package last month in an effort to hold the line.

Source-AFP