European Pharmaceutical Strategy draws attention - BPI and vfa statements

Since both strategies address some very relevant aspects for the pharmaceutical industry in Germany, the vfa (German Association of Researching Pharmaceutical Companies) and the BPI (German Pharmaceutical Industry Association) have published statements. On the one hand, the BPI praises that bureaucratic hurdles are to be avoided and that the competitive position of the pharmaceutical industry is to be strengthened. On the other hand, the BPI criticizes that the problem of supply bottlenecks is not sufficiently addressed¹.

The vfa president Steutel paints a different picture. He emphasizes the strength of the European Union with regard to research and development, which has become especially obvious through the Covid-19 pandemic, and which expresses itself in particular through leadership in the field of vaccines². Moreover, the vfa pushes for the creation of a unified European health sector, which should also include a European benefit assessment, similar to efforts related to a joint EU-HTA². 

The published European pharmaceutical strategy targets the following six fields of action, which we will analyze for you in detail in a blog series and highlight the potential influence on market access activities³:

1. availability and accessibility of medicines
2. data analytics, digital tools and digital transformation
3. innovation
4. antimicrobial resistance and other emerging health threats
5. supply chain challenges
6. network sustainability and operational excellence.

We will closely follow further developments in this area to advise our clients with the most up-to-date knowledge in the context of our customized market access strategies. 

Sources:

• BPI (2020) EU-Pharmastrategie: Standortstärkung muss Priorität haben (dated 10.12.2020).
• vfa (2020): Mehr Mut (dated 10.12.2020).
• European Medicines Agency (2020): European medicines agencies network strategy to 2025

Author: Sebastian Marben, M. Sc.