EU member states urged to boost biosimilars market access

“Safe and effective biosimilar monoclonal antibodies will arrive soon,” announced Gudbjorg Edda Eggertsdottir, president of the European Generic Medicines Association (EGA) in her opening address at the 11th EGA International Symposium on Biosimilars in London.

Uptake of biosimilars has been inconsistent across European Union member states and most have been slow to take advantage of the opportunities offered by biosimilars. “We now need the right environment for the advent of biosimilar monoclonal antibodies as biosimilar medicines provide a unique opportunity to help manage the growing costs of biopharmaceutical medicines and increase patients access to medicines in Europe,” Ms Eggertsdottir said.

An EU/US framework allowing single development should become a reality soon, continued education of all stakeholders is needed and all member states are invited to take action to boost market access for biosimilars. This could be done by rolling out the recently published Tajani Project consensus information document on biosimilars and by further developing the necessary conditions for an informed uptake and adequate patient access to these high quality biopharmaceuticals.