Who Will Control The EU’s Medicine Security?

“Investment in medicine security is like an insurance policy against a crisis. It is worth having, not only at the EU level but also at the national level. It does, however, require investment. This would strengthen not only medicine security but also the innovative economy”, says Sebastian Szymanek, CEO of Polpharma

The EU has a plan on how to prevent critical shortages of medications. Legislative work has begun in the European Commission, aiming to establish funds that will support the production of APIs and ready-to-use pharmaceuticals in the EU. What do you think about this course of action?

These actions fit into the medicine security agenda. They also prove that Europe is starting to learn from what happened during the pandemic when supply chains were broken. The EU realises that further crises cannot be ruled out. From the perspective of patients’ interests, it is a step in the right direction.

Why?

Today, we import over 80 per cent of our active ingredients from Asia. We are also becoming increasingly dependent on imports when it comes to finished products, i.e. packaged medicines. This means that medicine security in Europe, including Poland, is deteriorating year-on-year. The initiative the EU is working on is an attempt to reverse this trend. Unfortunately, this is not something that can be achieved by a single decision and within a year. It will take time. However, the groundwork has already been started, and this is the most important thing.