This report outlines the threat of pharmaceutical crime in the EU and beyond, as assessed by Europol. It aims to raise awareness of the ways criminal networks exploit consumers and industry in generating illegal revenue through producing and selling counterfeit medicines.

Cervical cancer, primarily caused by persistent Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection, remains one of the leading causes of cancer-related deaths among women in developing countries. Although HPV vaccines are widely available in these regions, vaccine uptake remains persistently low. To address...

In December 2020, Germany implemented a policy restricting online pharmacies from offering rebates on prescription drugs to members of the statutory health insurance. This policy change created a natural experiment, allowing us to analyze its impact on the pharmaceutical market using...

Patients in rural areas have higher rates of opioid use and overdose than those in urban areas that are linked to the greater prevalence and amounts of opioids prescribed. We merge individual claims data with county-level supply and demand factors to examine this relationship between...

Background: The supply chain refers to the full process of creating and providing a good or service, starting with the raw materials and ending with the final customer. It requires cooperation and coordination between many parties, including the suppliers, manufacturers, distributors, retailers,...

This Research Paper addresses the growing problem of access to essential medicines, focusing on the role of intellectual property rights, particularly patent rights, in restricting access by enabling pharmaceutical market monopolies that keep drug prices high. The paper explores the Bolar...

Background In their interesting systematic review, Gallehzan et al. quoted our article Cost-utility analysis of teriflunomide in naïve vs. previously treated patients with relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS) in Italy. While we are grateful to Gallehzan et al. for their interest in the...

Community pharmacies deliver high-quality health care and are responsible for medication safety. The goal of the government is to ensure nationwide, accessible, and affordable medical health-care services provided by pharmacies. Therefore, the per capita density of community pharmacies matters....

Purpose: This study extends previous research by exploring the key lessons learned by the pharmaceutical industry in South Africa from the COVID-19 pandemic supply chain disruptions. Design/methodology/approach: Having embraced the interpretivist paradigm, 25 supply chain professionals were...

I study the transmission of pharmacy mark-ups to retail prices and the policy between retail markups and Value Added Tax (VAT) rates in Finland. My reduced form evidence demonstrates that pharmaceutical manufacturers respond to a decrease in the regulated pharmacy mark-ups by increasing their...

In recent years, concerns about transactions in the pharmaceutical sector harming innovation and competition through the discontinuation of overlapping drug R&D projects, so-called "killer acquisitions", have prompted regulatory action and research. The objective of this study is twofold. First,...

The Regulation on Health Technology Assessment (Regulation (EU) 2021/2282) HTAR establishes a framework for conducting Joint Clinical Assessments (JCA) at EU level. These assessments support member states in their national Health Technology Assessment (HTA) processes, providing a scientific...

The Regulation on Health Technology Assessment (Regulation (EU) 2021/2282) HTAR establishes a framework for conducting Joint Clinical Assessments (JCA) at EU level. These assessments support member states in their national Health Technology Assessment (HTA) processes, providing a scientific...

The COVID-19 vaccines played a pivotal role in safeguarding populations. Yet, vaccine hesitancy remained a significant barrier to increasing coverage rates, as many high-income countries faced prolonged vaccine refusal campaigns. In Japan, vaccine doses were administered under a reservation...

The rising number of refugees and internally displaced people (IDPs) presents new challenges for vaccine distribution and the spread of diseases. How do forcibly displaced population inflows affect infectious diseases incidence in host communities? Can a policy intervention that vaccinates...

This study investigates the relationship between economic preferences and COVID-19 vaccination readiness using two representative samples of the German population (N 5,000). We elicited altruism, patience, risk-taking and trust using validated survey questions. We find robust, positive...

This Critical Medicines Alliance is a new consultative mechanism bringing together national authorities, industry, civil society, the Commission and EU agencies to identify the best measures to address and avoid shortages of critical medicines. It complements regulatory measures in the proposed...

This page provides an overview of key issues related to drug consumption rooms, including service delivery, guidance and existing evidence and latest developments in Europe. It also considers implications for policy and practice.

With Europe's Beating Cancer Plan, the European Commission is supporting effective cancer strategies that can prevent illness, save lives and reduce the impacts of cancer. This includes a Flagship Initiative to address cancers that can be prevented by vaccination, namely cancers caused by Human...

Seasonal influenza is a respiratory infectious disease that spreads globally through annual epidemics and occasional pandemics. Vaccination is the most effective means for preventing influenza infection. However, the effectiveness of influenza vaccines varies to some degree from season to...

Influenza is a disease of public health importance due to the substantial seasonal morbidity and mortality and the high pandemic potential of its aetiologic agents, influenza viruses. Diagnosis of influenza is mainly based on laboratory testing (i.e. molecular testing) of nasopharyngeal samples....

EU Drug Market: Heroin and other opioids describes the European opioids market from production and trafficking to distribution and use. It details the processes, materials and players involved at various stages and levels of the market. The module takes a threat assessment approach, identifying...