CMA deal an ‘important milestone’, EU’s medicine supply chains strengthened

The provisional agreement on the Critical Medicines Act (CMA) has been broadly welcomed by policymakers, industry groups and patient organisations, with stakeholders describing the deal as a major step towards strengthening Europe’s pharmaceutical resilience and reducing vulnerabilities in critical medicine supply chains.

The deal reached between the European Parliament and the Council under the Cyprus Presidency is intended to bolster Europe’s pharmaceutical resilience amid growing concerns over medicine shortages, supply chain vulnerabilities and dependence on third-country manufacturing, particularly in Asia.

Aris Angelis, secretary general for Strategic Planning at the Greek health ministry, said the agreement “represents an important milestone for Europe.”

“[The deal] is a significant step towards strengthening security of supply, reinforcing European manufacturing capacities and further embedding resilience considerations into the EU pharmaceutical policy…