“The health, economic, and societal benefits of investing in health far outweigh the costs. There is thus an imperative to change the mindset that considers health funding entirely as a cost or an expenditure rather than one of the most effective investments. This outdated mindset has led to untold suffering, massive loss of lives and a global economic crisis.”¹.

Building on Prof. Rifat Atun’s approach and taking a One Health or Circular Health approach, our point of departure must be that socio-economic prosperity is not possible without a tailoring of existing systems, frameworks and incentives so that they drive health achievements through innovation.  The European Commission understands the criticality of supporting innovation in other fields. The European Chips Act is a €40 billion investment to translate research in the semiconductor field into industrial innovation and market-feasible products. We currently have medical systems established before the first industrial revolution, yet we are living in the age of the “Industrial Revolution 4.0” transferring the dynamic experience and knowledge toward “Industrial Revolution 5.0” and now we have this opportunity to move from the lab to the fab in healthcare. In fact, much of the value generated in medical technology through the Chips Act could be squandered if we do not take a circular economy approach to make sure our regulations and processes fit to enable those products to be approved and accessed in our countries.

By engaging with non-traditional stakeholders and looking at the pharma industry also as an economic sector we can ensure we are mining the breadth of the Next Generation discovery potentials that are available to deliver health and economic security.

“From Action to Impact, to get traction is key out of the frontier toward Europe of the Future” was mentioned as a note by Mariya Gabriel as European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth during conversation at the perspective “From Innovation to Impact – #EUnite the Future”.

Strategic initiatives to stimulate innovation and entrepreneurship in Europe are needed, such as for example @GEN-E European Entrepreneur Festival.

In addition, to address the health-wealth paradigm, we need to consider the social determinants of health inequality and access to innovations. By focusing the underserved new waives of education, research and entrepreneurship, addressing the key dialogue on #NextGenEU recovery plan, we are creating the EU Powerhouse on Innovation and Youth. By boosting research to the NextGen Innovations we could provide sustainable system solutions to Europe and beyond. By promoting the intellectual property creation by innovations, we could transfer the success stories across the EU health eco-system. Talking about health systems in a non-traditional way, and beyond the traditional stakeholders in healthcare, will help raising understanding of how our health systems works and will bring a different level of awareness in citizens on the importance of health for wealth.

Acting with an inclusive approach, looking for alignment of interests and understanding beyond specific positions in healthcare, covering the entire spectrum, from the Research and Development ecosystem in Europe to citizens and patients access to innovations provides space for diverse and diversified shareholder groups to come together in a think and act movement, fostering exchange of views, collaboration, and mutual learnings.

Our today challenges should encourage the EU Institutions and Member States to be focused to lay out a pharma strategy to promote investment in health so to move beyond the default position classical in NCD’s, in primary prevention as a proof of Sustainable Health Concept, as well as unleashing Europe’s Health & Innovation enterprise, academia, entrepreneurs, and science leaders to build an innovative-Health ecosystem. Europe will have to liaise closely with each country to ensure that priorities, and the EU4Health, Europe’s beating cancer plan (EBCP), EIC & Erasmus, IHI initiatives, are understood as examples and ground-breaking opportunities for translating into real-world improved outcomes for as many patients as possible. Ultimately the EBCP represents a demo-practical and positive opportunity for Member States to further position high quality care as an investment in society, and not simply a cost thus achieving the ultimate goal of Health is Wealth.

Converging partnerships across government, academia & citizens society, and industry are vital to converge innovative ideas into solutions available to the health care system. And the governments can play a role by facilitating this move away from siloed, vertical integration and enabling a fluid adaptive predictable regulatory environment that encourages the exploration and development of ideas.

Addressing sustainable part and system solutions rather than challenges are essential to bring research and citizens together, with a health in all policies approach, via multi-stakeholder collaboration to accelerate time to patient access to sustainable innovations and to stimulate and preserve an innovation friendly environment in Europe, aligned to our European values.

1. Atun (2021), ‘A Report to the G20 Presidency and B20 Health Taskforce’