Famous sensors for children with diabetes coming to Serbia, to be free! Memić: ‘I still buy on black market, but...’ Lončar: ‘We are among the first’
A great victory for Kurir – the FreeStyle Libre 2 Plus, one of the highest quality continuous glucose monitoring sensors, which many parents of children with Type 1 diabetes have been purchasing on the black market or abroad, as Tourism Minister Husein Memić still has to do, spending around €140 per month, will be available in Serbia through health insurance starting next year. This was agreed during a meeting between Health Minister Zlatibor Lončar and representatives of the company Abbott in Belgrade.
More than a year and a half ago, Kurir began a campaign for children with diabetes and their right to have the best aids, including the best continuous glucose monitoring sensors. These sensors measure blood sugar levels 24 hours a day, minute by minute, and alert users when levels approach dangerous thresholds, whether hypoglycaemia (too low) or hyperglycaemia (too high), both of which can be life-threatening. From the starting point of having just one manufacturer's sensor covered by insurance for children under 18 – a product that many parents had complained about – to the rulebook that introduced a plurality of sensors, we have now reached a final victory. The prestigious Libre sensors will also be available to children in Serbia, and of course, free of charge!
"We want the citizens of Serbia to use the highest quality, most modern, and least invasive systems for measuring blood sugar. This includes sensors and readers that do not require a transmitter and automatically measure glucose levels every minute. This advanced technology is yet to take hold in other countries in the region, but Serbian citizens should be among the first to use it – and for free – once it becomes available next year. In addition to introducing cutting-edge blood sugar measurement systems, we will strive to gradually raise the age limit for free access to this technology, allowing more people to benefit from it and continue living and working as normally as possible," said Lončar. He added that Abbott's representatives emphasised their shared interest in registering and applying the technologically advanced FreeStyle Libre 2 Plus glucose monitoring system in Serbia, and that they will do everything to complete the technical and administrative procedures as soon as possible.
Meanwhile, Husein Memić, whose personal account for Kurir of a government minister buying sensors for his son on the black market shook Serbia, is still buying Libre sensors illegally and will continue to do so until this sensor officially passes inspection at the ALIMS (The Agency for Medicines and Medical Devices of Serbia) and becomes available in Serbia. Then, he will have access to a high-quality sensor for free.
"I am still forced to buy sensors on the black market, though now I import them from relatives in Germany, instead of buying them in Serbia. I pay €70 for one sensor, which lasts for 14 days. Thanks to the Ministry of Health, led by Minister Lončar, next year Serbia will receive the best system for measuring blood sugar, the technologically advanced FreeStyle Libre 2 Plus, and it will be free for all children under 18. These Abbott sensors and readers automatically measure glucose levels almost every minute. They are the most reliable, accurate, and minimally invasive, which is especially important for children. Most users in Serbia already rely on Libre, and I am confident that Minister Lončar will do everything to ensure these are available for free to adult diabetes patients as well," Memić told Kurir, adding:
- "This is a great victory for all of us who have been fighting for this, including Kurir and journalist Jelena S. Spasić, to whom I am particularly grateful as she was the first to write about this issue. It is also a victory for Serbian healthcare and, most importantly, a victory for the children who will now have the best quality of life. This is the result we have achieved in just one year. I am incredibly happy!"
