EURACTIV - The EU's pharmaceutical reforms are not law yet, but for Belgium, the cost of waiting is already real. The pharma package faces a final vote this autumn, and most rules only bite around 2028, while the Critical Medicines Act could apply soon after 2026. Read more

EU PERSPECTIVES - The revision of the EU's medical device rules is exposing a wider disagreement over how AI should be regulated in healthcare. While industry and some lawmakers argue for less duplication between the Medical Device Regulation and the AI Act, others warn against giving the Commission too much discretion over future requirements. ...

EU PERSPECTIVES - That question overshadowed the Irish presidency's first appearance before European Parliament's Health Committee. While Dublin promoted competitiveness, innovation and resilience, lawmakers repeatedly steered the debate back to one issue: the budget. Read more

EURACTIV - Ten years after the first etanercept biosimilar was launched in Europe, regulators, registry data and practising clinicians have arrived at a common position: approved biosimilars work as well as the medicines they copy, and they widen access to them. Read more

EU PERSPECTIVES - A group of lawmakers wants to establish a new fund for health innovation, aimed at ensuring faster access to breakthrough medicines and diagnostics. It should be built into the next EU long-term budget. The main idea? Preventing the dilution of funds in the wider competitiveness spending. Read more

EU PERSPECTIVES - Europe's spending on innovative medicines buys more than health. A new report shows that every euro returns more than five times in economic value. Newer treatments help people live longer, stay in work and spend less time in hospital. Yet health systems still often see medicines first as a cost to cut, not an...

EU PERSPECTIVES - Europe's June heatwave killed at least 3,500 people. The European Commission now promises a new climate resilience framework to stop it happening again. Read more

EURACTIV - Belgian MEP Wouter Beke (EPP), the European Parliament's lead rapporteur on the Biotech Act in the industry committee (ITRE), is pressing for a larger patent-related incentive for innovative medicines than the European Commission has proposed, as lawmakers tabled their amendments to the file. Read more

EURACTIV - Across Europe, governments are buying 'greener' medicines. Norway scores them one way, Sweden another, France a third. The same medicine, assessed in different countries, receives different environmental ratings. Right now, 'green healthcare' means whatever each country decides it means. Read more

EURACTIV - Global guidelines commit EU governments to make neurological conditions a national priority, yet epilepsy care still varies sharply across Europe. A recent report urges the EU to harmonise standards, embed epilepsy in its non-communicable disease policy, and build mental health into the standard epilepsy care budget. Read more