Meeting with European social partners on the
Pharmaceutical Strategy and Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan
12 November 2020
The purpose of the meeting is to have an exchange of views between the Social Partners and Vice-
President Schinas and Commissioner Kyriakides on the upcoming Pharmaceutical Strategy to be
adopted on 24th November and the presentation, planned for 9th December, of Europe’s Beating
Cancer Plan.
Policy Context of the Pharmaceutical Strategy
x The overall goal of this initiative is to help ensure the EU’s
supply of safe and affordable
medicines to meet patients’ needs and to
support the EU pharmaceutical industry to
remain an innovator and world leader.
x The pharmaceutical sector is a
major contributor to the EU economy as a knowledge-
intensive sector with more than 800,000 direct jobs and a trade surplus of more than
€100 billion. The global pharmaceutical market is estimated to grow in the coming years,
offering a growth potential for EU industry. To make the most of this potential, the EU
workforce needs to have the appropriate skills.
x
Innovative technologies such as artificial intelligence and analysis of data collected from
clinical experience (real world data) are challenging the way products are developed and may
impact therapeutic approaches and business models.
x At the same time, given that the EU has an ageing population, a rising burden of diseases and
is faced with emerging health threats such as the COVID-10 pandemic, new therapies need to
be clinically better than existing alternatives as well as cost-effective to ensure the
financial
sustainability of Member States’ health systems.
x There has been recurring political debate about
access, availability (including shortages) and
affordability of medicines. Council conclusions have focussed on 1) how to reconcile the
need to ensure wide access to innovative medicines for unmet medical need and financial
sustainability of health systems and 2) access to medicines through a life-cycle approach. The
European Parliament has adopted resolutions on options for improving access to medicines,
on antimicrobial resistance and on shortages.
x The current COVID-19 crisis has further exacerbated
vulnerabilities in the supply of
medicines and has shone light on new problems, e.g. absence of good monitoring of supply
and demand of medicines. The Pharmaceutical strategy will include early lessons learnt from
the current pandemic, but is much more than a crisis response.
x There is a need to build a
holistic, patient-centred, forward-looking Pharmaceutical strategy
for Europe which covers the whole life cycle of medicines from, scientific discovery over
authorisation to patient access. It will create synergies with relevant EU policies, such as in
areas of research and innovation, industry, competition, environment and sustainability.
x The strategy will cover:
o Unmet medical needs
o Patient access to medicines, including affordability
o Research, innovation and digital transformation
o Global value and supply chain
x The strategy will include a number of
high-level actions to be further elaborated in the
implementation phase, which will start as from 2021.
x
Actions will be legislative and non-legislative and will be rolled out through the mandate of
this Commission, and beyond. In the implementation phase,
consultations with stakeholders
will take place for specific actions.
Policy Context of Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan
x While it is estimated that 40% of cancers can be prevented, 3.5 million people in the EU are
diagnosed with
cancer every year, and 1.3 million lose their lives to it. Beyond the enormous
physical and emotional pain and distress caused to patients, it also places a
heavy burden on
healthcare and social protection systems and on the economy at large, including the work force
and employers.
x More ambitious action on health
promotion and prevention is needed, as the
cost of cancer
care in the EU is increasing at an unprecedented rate, putting significant pressure on societies
and economies. Overall, the
economic impact of cancer in Europe is estimated to exceed
€100 billion annually.
x The influence of EU
legislation and norm setting,
financial support programmes and
research,
can substantially reinforce prevention (e.g. EU legislation on tobacco control, on alcohol and
tobacco taxation, EU cancer registries, screening guidelines, legislation on food labelling).
x
Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan is one of the Commission’s
flagship initiatives and a main priority
in the area of public health. It is a crosscutting priority of the von der Leyen Commission as a
whole, with
many policy areas making important contributions, including our preparedness and
response in dealing with the
COVID-19 pandemic.
x The
overall objective of
Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan is to reduce the suffering from cancer in
the EU, putting
citizens and patients at the centre and addressing cancer in a holistic way
through its four pillars: 1) prevention 2) early detection; 3) diagnosis and treatment; and 4)
quality of life of cancer patients and survivors.
x The Plan will have a
‘health-in-all-policies’ approach to ensure the strong involvement of social
and environmental sectors and address inequalities horizontally to help to reduce the current
health inequalities that persist between and within the Member States, as well as between
different socioeconomic population groups, for example regarding access to diagnosis and
treatment, as well as survival rates.
x Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan will aim to significantly
reduce the increasing burden on national
health and social systems, reduce the pressure on governmental budgets and promote the
productivity and growth of the economy, including a healthy workforce.
x The implementation of legislation in view of reducing
exposure to hazardous substances and
radiation at the work place, where 52% of annual occupational deaths in the EU can be
attributed to work-related cancer, will be a priority under the prevention pillar of the Plan.
x To ensure quality of cancer care, Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan will support the cancer workforce
through targeted training and continuous education initiatives, supporting Member States to
address skills gaps.
x Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan will include a combination
of legislative and non-legislative
measures with tangible actions designed to make a real difference to people across the EU. A
more level playing field for patients, fewer inequalities and a new focus on effective prevention
are objectives which can be implemented through several EU policies and instruments.
x The Plan will link to
other relevant EU initiatives such as the Pharmaceutical Strategy, the Green
Deal, Farm to Fork and Zero Pollution strategies, the European Pillar of Social Rights, the
European Health Data Space and the 1+ Million Genomes Initiative, the Chemicals Strategy, as
well as initiatives related to health professionals such as the Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions.
Key issues for discussion
The discussion will focus on the following key questions:
x What do you expect as future trends with regard to the sectors concerned by these
initiatives, notably as regards jobs, skills (training) and investment needs?
x What do you see as the challenges which can, and should be addressed at EU level in this
regard?
x How could, based on the experience of the COVID-19 pandemic, the sectors concerned by
these initiatives be supported at EU level to be more resilient, in face of future public health
crises?
x What are your positions and recommendations with regard to possible - legislative and non-
legislative - EU measures, notably in the pharmaceutical sector?
(OHFWURQLFDOO\VLJQHGRQ87&LQDFFRUGDQFHZLWKDUWLFOHRI&RPPLVVLRQ'HFLVLRQ&