EFPIA reaction to leak of the proposed pharmaceutical legislation
10.02.23
Despite Member State calls for the Commission to support European competitiveness and strategic autonomy, the current text of the revised pharmaceutical legislation would irretrievably sabotage an industry that contributes more to the EU trade surplus than any other high-tech sector, supports 2.5 million jobs across the bloc and invests €42bn every year in European R&D.
Speaking about the impact of the proposed legislation, EFPIA Director General, Nathalie Moll said “Whether it is naivety, blind optimism or a more conscious decision for Europe to rely on innovation from the US and Asia, there should be no doubt that in its current form, this proposed legislation will be extremely damaging to the competitiveness of Europe’s industry and to our region’s strategic autonomy. It will have a negative impact on jobs, investment, the European research eco-system, growth, patient access to new clinical trials and availability of the latest treatments for decades to come.”
Europe’s leading companies are reporting difficulties in researching and developing medicines and vaccines in Europe and their intent to take that research to the US and Asia. These are not knee-jerk reactions but reflect growing concern that the Commission is failing to take the once in a generation opportunity to develop legislative proposals that put European patients at the cutting-edge of new treatments, create high-value jobs, drive growth and make Europe more resilient.”
“Now is the time to decide what kind of future we want for Europe. If we want to retain our role in medical innovation it can only be achieved through a future-proof, innovation-minded regulatory framework, and a world-class, robust and predictable intellectual property ecosystem. At the same time, we have to find and implement actions that improve the significant variance in accessing new medicines across Europe. From the industry perspective that process has begun with the public commitment already in 2022 to file for pricing and reimbursement in all Member States within 2 years of getting approval and documenting progress in a portal. With the delivery of healthcare remaining the responsibility of National Governments, transforming access for European patients cannot be achieved through EU legislation but requires new ways of working and partnership with patients, healthcare systems, Industry and Member States.”