Press announcements and conferences

Todor Kesimov is the new Chairman of The Association of the Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Bulgaria (ARPharM)

26/05/2023, Sofia

At the regular reporting-election General Assembly of the Association of the Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Bulgaria (ARPharM) held on May 18, 2023, a new Chairman of the Management Board was elected.

Todor Kesimov, so far member of the Board, is the new Chairman of ARPharM. He is General manager of "Takeda Bulgaria" EOOD, a financier by education and since 2020 a member of the Board of Directors of the Japan-Bulgaria Business Association.

The sо far Chairman of the Board, Dr. Stamen Bankovski, will take the position of Deputy Chairman. Dr. Boryana Alexieva, Head of Relations with Governmental Structures, Institutions and Patient Organizations at Johnson & Johnson, and Mr. Hesham Sabri, General Manager of Roche Bulgaria, also retain their positions on the Management Board.

During the General Assembly meeting, three new members were elected to join the governing body of the Association. Among them are Mr. Pavel Kolev - Manager of AbbVie for Bulgaria, Mrs. Maria Lukanova - Market Access Manager at Bayer Bulgaria, and Dr. Krum Kasabov - Director of Novo Nordisk for Bulgaria.

Evolution of Access to Health in Bulgaria over the last decade

20/04/2023, Sofia

The Executive Director of ARPharM delivered the "Evolution of Access to Health in Bulgaria over the last decade" presentation at the ISPOR Bulgaria chapter and ISPOR CEE Chapter 11th Adriatic Congress on Pharmacoeconomics and Outcomes Research with Focus on CEE in Sofia.

In the past decade, access to healthcare in Bulgaria undoubtedly has improved. Public funding has doubled but remains significantly lower than the EU average. Out-of-pocket payments are quite high.

The number of hospital beds, outpatient centers, medical labs and doctors has increased. However, medical care remains unevenly distributed in the country and there is a severe shortage of nurses. Prevention and screening remain at a very low level.

Access to innovative pharmaceutical treatment has also improved. Public funding of pharmaceuticals has more than doubled but also dropped as a percentage of total public health spending due to growing industry's payback.

Bulgaria provides access to only 42 % of the new drugs authorized by EMA between 2014 and 2020 with a delay of more than 2 years following marketing authorization.

New Chairman of the Main Board of ARPharM was Elected

08/07/2022, Sofia

At a regular meeting of the General Assembly of the Association of the Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Bulgaria (ARPharM), held on May 19, 2022, two new members of the Association's Management Board (MB) were elected.

Dr. Stamen Bankovski, director for Bulgaria, Romania, and Hungary of the pharmaceutical company Astellas, was elected Chairman of the ARPharM Main Board.

The other new member of the Main Board is Dr. Boryana Alexieva - Head of Relations with Governmental Structures, Institutions and Patient Organizations in Janssen - the pharmaceutical companies of Johnson & Johnson, Bulgaria.

The new figures in the management of ARPharM will continue the organisation's efforts in the direction of improving Bulgarian patients' access to quality, modern and effective medical treatment and will cooperate with all state institutions and patient organisations for the preparation of balanced policies to improve the healthcare system in our country.

A New Main Board of The Association Of Research-Based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Bulgaria Is Elected

May 31, 2021, Sofia

Dr. Svetoslav Tsenov is the New Chairperson of the Managing Board of ARPharM

The regular annual General Assembly of the Association of Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers in Bulgaria (ARPharM), held on the 18th of May 2021 elected a new Managing Board of the Association.

Dr. Svetoslav Tsenov, Director and Head of Strategic Development for Bulgaria, Central and Eastern Europe, Greece, Portugal and the Baltic Region of the pharmaceutical company Astellas was elected Chairman of the Management Board of ARPharM for a two-years term. Dr. Krassimira Chemishanska, Executive Director of Amgen Bulgaria and Chairperson of the Association in the previous term, following a tradition of continuity, was elected a Vice-chairperson of the association.

Interaction between pharmaceutical companies and medical professionals in COVID situation

May 12, 2020, Sofia

The Association of the Research-based Pharmaceutical Manufacturers (ARPharM) and its member companies are committed to the global fight against the COVID-19 pandemic due to coronavirus. Our thoughts are with the people affected by the infection and their loved ones, as well as with the doctors and pharmacists who are at the forefront in the fight to overcome the pandemic.

The Research-based pharmaceutical industry is focused on three key areas: • the development of new vaccines, diagnostics and drug therapies to combat COVID-19 - around 7 vaccine applicants and over 30 antiviral drugs at various stages of development or use are currently being investigated by innovative pharmaceutical companies in over 25 clinical trials to determine whether they are effective in preventing or treating patients with COVID-19 - http://arpharm.org/index.php?id=1245;