Meeting Europe’s medical needs now and in the future

Past event IN PERSON

Sustainable Livelihoods
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Friends of Europe Meeting Europe’s medical needs now and in the future 2023

What happened?

Decision-makers shaping Europe’s healthcare systems joined a roundtable dinner to discuss the European Commission’s proposed revision of the EU’s pharmaceutical legislation, with a particular focus on the question of addressing the continent’s unmet medical needs, as well as defining the terminology.

Speakers agreed to prioritise patients’ quality of life and ensure access to the right treatments, including for those suffering from rare conditions. Policymakers also stressed the varying definitions of unmet medical needs among stakeholders, medical personnel and patients.

“A health issue that is not properly dealt with in the healthcare system can lead to political problems, that in turn can lead to other things,” said Vlad Voiculescu, former Romanian health minister and 2020-2021 European Young Leader (EYL40).

Europe is not a competitive powerhouse when it comes to medical needs, as only one in five medicines are produced here “and yet we have the same needs as everybody else,” pointed out Nathalie Moll, Director General of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA). “We want to continue to have the environment that allows us to fund solutions,” she added.

Florian Schmidt, Deputy Head of Unit for Medicines at the European Commission Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE), offered an overview of the upcoming legislation and gave attendees a glimpse behind the Commission’s thinking: “We opted for an approach where we are setting high-level criteria in the legislation, but then we’re being very clear that these criteria need to be developed further by scientists in the medical field,” he explained. “We want to stimulate companies to invest more in risky areas, where we are currently lacking therapies” in Europe, he added.

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Schedule

Schedule

Registration of participants and welcome drinks
Meeting Europe’s medical needs now and in the future
Expand Meeting Europe’s medical needs now and in the future

Questions include:

  • How can public research funding be used more strategically to address UMNs?
  • What are the best incentives to direct pharmaceutical research spending towards areas of societal and patient needs?
  • What are the potential consequences and advantages of introducing the concept of unmet medical needs in the European pharmaceutical market, including its effects on patient access to innovative treatments, and how do different European countries approach this issue in their healthcare systems?
  • In the context of addressing unmet medical needs, how can we ensure that no patient is left behind in the quest for better healthcare?
End of policymakers’ dinner debate
Speakers

Speakers

Nathalie_Moll
Nathalie Moll

Director-General of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA)

Show more information on Nathalie Moll

Nathalie Moll leads the federation that represents the pharmaceutical industry operating in Europe. She has spent 20 years working for the biotech industry at the EU and national level in associations and corporate positions. Moll previously worked as Secretary-General of EuropaBio, which was ranked as the most effective European trade association in Brussels in 2013. In this post, she promoted a dynamic and innovative environment for the biotech industry in Europe. Moll was named one of the 15 leading women in biotech in Europe in 2017.

Photo of Tamsin Rose
Tamsin Rose

Facilitator

Show more information on Tamsin Rose

Tamsin Rose is a facilitator who was until recently a senior fellow for health at Friends of Europe. Having studied international relations, she has 25 years of experience working across the European continent from Ireland to Mongolia. A natural communicator, Tamsin has been a radio reporter, worked on press for the EU Delegation in Moscow and is currently a member of the external speaker team for the European Commission Directorate-General for Communication, describing how the EU works and key policies to visitor groups from around the world. Since 2002, she has specialised in public health and public participation issues, serving as the Secretary General of the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA), and providing strategic advice for health groups on how to engage successfully with the EU.

Florian Schmidt
Florian Schmidt

Deputy Head of Unit for Medicines at European Commission Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE)

Show more information on Florian Schmidt

Florian Schmidt is Deputy Head of Unit for Medicines (Policy, Authorisation and Monitoring) at the European Commission Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE). Schmidt has been involved in the implementation of the pharmacovigilance legislation and followed the paediatric regulation. He also worked on the development of the Pharmaceutical Strategy for Europe and was part of the team preparing the reform of the EU pharmaceutical legislation. Schmidt is a lawyer by training and worked in several Directorates-General before joining DG SANTE.

Vlad Voiculescu
Vlad Voiculescu

Member of the European Parliament, former Romanian minister and 2020-2021 European Young Leader (EYL40)

Show more information on Vlad Voiculescu

Vlad Voiculescu is a member of the European Parliament, health policy expert and patient advocate, who until recently has served as the Romanian minister of health. After pursuing a career in finance, Voiculescu became active in public service, serving as the Romanian Finance Minister’s chief of staff before becoming the minister of health in the Dacian Cioloș government.  He has been involved in patient advocacy, both at the national and European levels for over a decade. Voiculescu is the founder of an international network of volunteers that helped over 2,500 cancer patients receive essential medicines that were missing in Romania, a story that featured in the HBO documentary The Network’. He is also the Co-Founder of MagiCAMP, which seeks to provide support to children diagnosed with cancer and other serious illnesses. For this work, the European Parliament awarded Voiculescu its ‘European Citizen’s Prize.’

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