Strasbourg | The European Parliament has adopted its position on the proposed Critical Medicines Act (CMA), a major EU initiative aimed at strengthening the availability, supply security, and resilience of essential medicines across Europe. The Parliament’s position will now move into trilogue negotiations with the European Commission and EU Member States to shape the final legislation.
The Parliament’s report supports the establishment of the proposed Critical Medicines Group, a coordination body that would include representatives from patient organisations alongside EU and national authorities. This body is presented as a key mechanism for coordinated implementation across policy areas that directly affect patients, linking patient experience to the operational level where shortage preparedness, supply risks, and mitigation measures are anticipated and addressed.
WPA welcomes this development and stresses that patient access, affordability, and health outcomes must remain central to the final agreement.
“The fight against medicine shortages must put patients first. Policies should not lead to higher costs or new barriers to care,” said Hussain Jafri, CEO, World Patients Alliance.
Key elements of the European Parliament’s position include:
– Stronger coordination of national stockpiles and contingency reserves to prevent future shortages
– Reforms to public procurement that move beyond lowest-cost criteria to better secure supply
– Expanded EU-level joint procurement to improve equitable access across Member States
– Support for “strategic projects” to strengthen EU-based production capacity
– A stronger role for patient representatives in EU critical medicines governance
WPA strongly supports measures that enhance patient involvement, transparency and cross-border equity in the prioritisation, procurement, and distribution of critical medicines. Meaningful patient participation in governance and decision-making at both EU and national levels is essential to ensure that lived experience informs priority setting, implementation, and monitoring throughout the CMA process.
At the same time, cost impacts and implementation risks must be carefully assessed. Without strong safeguards, resilience measures risk unintentionally increasing out-of-pocket costs or creating new access gaps for patients.
As negotiations move forward, WPA calls on EU institutions, Member States, and stakeholders to ensure that the final Critical Medicines Act delivers measurable improvements in access to medicines for all patients, supported by strong accountability and transparent implementation across Europe.