Critical Medicines Alliance
For ensuring stable supply chains and a strong European pharmaceutical industry.
UM – 01/2024
The European Commission called for a Critical Medicines Alliance on 16 January. This will create "a new industrial
pillar for the European Health Union". It will not be created to last
forever. The project - i.e. a network comprising the European Commission,
national governments and local authorities, industry and civil society - is
initially scheduled to run for five years. Interested parties - especially
stakeholders from the pharmaceutical industry and the public healthcare sector
- have until 24 February to join the alliance via this web
page. Subsequent accessions are not excluded.
Overall target: the strategic autonomy of the EU
This alliance comes as no surprise. It was
announced in October last year in the European
Commissions communication about combating shortages in medicinal products
within the EU as a medium and long-term measure for securing the supply of
medicines and combating drug shortages. Its focus is on particularly important
- critical - medicines. The European Commission published a list of them on 12
December last year (see DSV
News 12/2023 as well). This new network should enable targeted
consultations to be held between its members and find suitable solutions to the
problems. This means that existing problems must be identified, and suitable
measures must also be determined to eliminate them. The relevant contact
partners will all sit "at the same table" in this alliance. They will
be expected to provide recommendations and advice for faster manufacturing,
contractual or financing solutions, which will ultimately contribute to greater
strategic autonomy for the European Union (EU) as well.
... and medicines with weak points in their supply chains
The initial meeting of the Critical
Medicines Alliance is planned for the end of April. A work plan should be
adopted during this meeting. Then it goes to the working groups. The European
Commission is currently analysing the critical medicinal products with the
greatest vulnerabilities in the supply chain.
Also in focus: the industry
Creating the Critical Medicines Alliance
means that the European Health Union, which was conceptually launched in
November 2020 with a package of three legislative proposals for expanding the
EU's framework for health security and has been continuously expanded since
then, will have another industry-focused module added to it. This new
initiative is also about strengthening the EU's pharmaceutical industry, in
addition to avoiding shortages and increasing supply reliability.