The German hospital market has been subject over the past two decades to a variety of healthcare reforms. Particularly the introduction of diagnosis-related groups (DRGs) in 2004 aimed to increase efficiency of hospitals. The objective of the paper is to review recent studies comparing the...

Dramatic increases in health expenditures have led to a substantial number of regulatory interventions in the markets for devices over the last years. However, little attention has been paid thus far to the regulation of medical devices and its effects. This article explores the policies pursued...

Objective To examine the price reactions of German pharmacies to changes made to OTC drug regulations in 2004. Prior to these changes, regulations guaranteed identical prices in all German pharmacies.Methods Two years after market deregulation, 256 pharmacies were surveyed to determine the...

In 2011, the EU Directive on Patients’ Rights in Cross Border Healthcare was approved, including a regulation on mutual recognition of prescriptions.