Trade unions, non-profit organisations and health associations in Belgium are urging the government to implement a fairer and more transparent European pharmaceuticals policy in an open letter published on Friday morning.
The 'FairFarma' initiative calls for the Belgian government to regain control of soaring prices and scarce availability of medication at a European level. The letter, endorsed by 15 organisations, outlines eight policy priorities it wants Belgium to table during its EU presidency, which will kick off on 1 January 2024.
"It is time to sound the alarm about the unreasonable increase in drug prices," said Paul Callewaert, general secretary of Solidaris. "These are caused by the pharmaceutical industry's growing hunger for profit. Drug prices are a matter of social justice: we cannot accept that a third of the population struggles to care for themselves, while the pharmaceutical industry makes record profits at the expense of social security systems and at the expense of patients."
One major demand is to establish a "fair price model" for setting medication costs. One such model developed by the International Association of Mutual Benefit Societies claims it would guarantee fair prices across Europe whilst preserving the pharmaceutical industry's investment and profit margins.
"The cost of certain cancer treatments could be slashed by up to 18 times if this model were adopted in Belgium," they explained.
The initiative also demands an end to confidential contracts between Member States and pharmaceutical firms. In Belgium, around 20% of the total drug budget in 2022 is expected to be spent on closed-door deals – up from just 2% in 2013.
