In the future, the pharmaceutical industry will be required to store approximately 700 important medicines for four months. This includes, for example, painkillers and antibiotics, as Health Minister Johannes Rauch (Greens) announced on Thursday.
The regulation, which the European Commission has approved, also mentions medicines for cold symptoms and preparations for chronic heart and lung diseases. The warehouses must be filled in the coming months so that the medicines are available this winter. “This way we ensure that there are no supply bottlenecks in the winter.”
The costs that the pharmaceutical industry would have incurred due to storage can be reimbursed upon request by the Federal Office for Safety in Healthcare (BASG). In recent years, there have been bottlenecks in the supply of medicines throughout Europe. That is why a warehouse for active ingredients for critical medicines has already been set up.
Industry: “Well-intentioned, but only partially effective”
The pharmaceutical industry disagreed with Rauch. The scheme is “a well-intentioned measure. “But from our point of view it is only partially effective,” said Pharmig Secretary General Alexander Herzog. “If it has an impact, whether it’s negative or positive, we probably won’t see it until next winter.”
Production has already been ‘ramped up to the limit’. The supply problem can only be solved throughout Europe. “I will continue to demand this in Brussels,” Rauch confirmed.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
