The challenges are more or less the same. Increasing expenditure on medicines and growing challenges to secure supplies of medicines for hospitals and patients.
This has boosted collaboration that has been running across national borders in Europe for several years.
In the Nordic countries, Denmark has been working with Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland and Finland in the Nordisk Lægemiddelforum for some time. In 2019, this led to Norway, Iceland and Denmark issuing their first common Nordic tendering procedure. A success the countries are repeating this year.
Towards the south, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Austria collaborate with Ireland in the Beneluxa Initiative.
Countries in the Nordisk Lægemiddelforum and Beneluxa have now increased their cooperation.
The countries have brought with them their experience from Beneluxa and the Nordisk Lægemiddelforum in their common focus on supporting access to medicines. Part of the collaboration is to examine the challenges in accessing new, expensive pharmaceuticals.
Countries in the two groups have now agreed on a joint statement that is available in full here.
Read more about the Nordisk Lægemiddelforum here.
Read more about Beneluxa here.