Over 550 Treatments Compete for Inclusion in Israel’s 2027 Health Basket Expansion

This year, approximately 520 medications and 35 medical technologies have been submitted for review by Israel's health basket committee, which is preparing to expand the national health services basket for 2027. The committee's discussions are expected to begin in the coming months, after last year's delay caused by the absence of a permanent health minister. The budget for the basket expansion remains undecided, though it has increased by about 100 million shekels annually in recent years, reaching roughly 650 million shekels in total. Experts warn that despite Israel’s health basket once being generous and up-to-date, it has eroded due to the rising number of costly, innovative, and often life-saving treatments.

Among the obesity treatments submitted are the weight-loss injections Wegovy and Mounjaro. Wegovy, added last year for adolescents aged 12-18, is now proposed for adults aged 18-28 and adults with cardiovascular-related obesity. Sleep medication Quviviq is resubmitted after being excluded last year despite increased sleep disorders linked to the war. Preventive medicine candidates include the Bexsero vaccine against meningococcal B for infants, following recent infant deaths, and expanded eligibility for vaccines against pneumococcal pneumonia and shingles.

In rare diseases, treatments such as Mimrylo for polycythemia vera and Elevidys for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, costing about 12 million shekels per patient, are proposed. For the first time, Nerandomilast for advanced pulmonary fibrosis is submitted, marking significant progress in this lethal disease group. Cancer treatments include dozens of drugs, such as Datoroway for aggressive triple-negative breast cancer, Enhertu for early-stage breast cancer, Tecentriq for colorectal cancer, and new therapies for chronic lymphocytic leukemia and small-cell lung cancer.

Alzheimer’s patients face high costs again as Lecanemab and Donanemab, which slow cognitive decline in early stages, are resubmitted after exclusion in previous years. Lecanemab’s price, after reduction, is about 160,000 shekels per patient annually, totaling an estimated 58 million shekels for potential patients. Patients often rely on private insurance for coverage. Other notable submissions include Cobenfy for schizophrenia, MRI-guided ultrasound for Parkinson’s, expanded lung cancer screening, earlier mammography eligibility, and neurofeedback therapy for post-trauma symptoms.

Health policy experts emphasize the critical nature of this review period. Prof. Nadav Davidovitch of the Taub Center highlighted that annual basket budget increases do not keep pace with rising healthcare costs driven by aging and expensive technologies, leading to underinvestment in preventive care. Baruch Lieberman, CEO of the "Friends of Medicine" association, warned that many essential drugs will again be excluded due to budget constraints, calling for a structural budget increase to better meet public health needs. He described the decision as not only economic but ethical, enabling more patients access to life-saving treatments.