Policy Recommendations | 14 July, 2016 | Download PDF
Medicines are crucial to improving our health and well-being. But in the European Union (EU), sky-rocketing costs for new patented medicines combined with shrinking healthcare budgets are jeopardising affordable access to them. At the same time, in Europe, despite strong intellectual property (IP) protection and continued strengthening of market monopolies, there has been a striking lack of medical innovation. Only a few new medicines that address priority public health needs and show true therapeutic added value have been brought to market in the last decade.
The situation requires immediate policy intervention at international, national and regional levels. New policies and mechanisms that contribute to affordable access to medicines and their rational use are needed. And good governance of medicines policy, which involves independent and democratic processes, is also required to make the system more transparent, accountable and effective.
The situation requires…
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