Words by Jade Williams
Stefan Oelrich, President, Bayer Pharmaceuticals Division, has been elected President of the EFPIA.
He is joined by Teresa Graham, CEO, Roche Pharmaceuticals and Carlos Gallardo, Chairman and CEO, Almirall, as first and second vice presidents respectively.
The new leadership team warned that Europe’s position in the global life sciences sector is under mounting pressure due to geopolitical shifts and increasing competition from the US and China. Policymakers, they said, face a critical choice between allowing Europe’s competitiveness to decline further, or take steps to re-establish the region’s leadership in innovation.
“The time has come to reinstate Europe as a global epicentre of biopharmaceutical innovation,” stated Oelrich. “By pressing the reset button on efforts to attract investment; to accelerate the pace of scientific translation into medicines; and to speed up patient-access to treatments, we can and will build a biopharmaceutical ecosystem that sustainably thrives for the health and economic security of Europeans today and tomorrow.”
Reinvigorating the sector, EFPIA argues, will require restoring Europe’s position at the forefront of medical innovation and patient care, improving access to medicines across all EU countries and reversing the significant decline in clinical trials.
To help with this transformation, EFPIA is calling for urgent action in four areas: Significantly increasing investment in innovative medicines, developing a regulatory framework that supports rapid innovation, strengthening intellectual property protections and revitalising the life sciences ecosystem.
Also commenting in the press release, Graham noted that “supporting healthcare innovation isn’t just about staying globally competitive — it’s a strategic driver of stronger economies, and a more resilient, future-ready society”.
With this renewed direction of leadership, the need for coordinated action in strengthening Europe’s pharmaceutical innovation standing is made clear.
