Germany's VFA claims big life expectancy gain

The life expectancy of German citizens will rise by six years in 2050, according to data published by the Federal Statistical Office, to 88 years for women and 84 for men. The German Association of Research-Based Pharmaceutical Companies (VFA) welcomed the report which, it argues, demonstrates the value of innovative medicines protected by patents.

Gabriele Doblhammer-Reiter, the director of the Rostock-based Center for the Study of Demographic Change (ZDWA), noted the link between life-expectancy and innovative drug therapies. Prof Doblhammer-Reiter said: "modern treatment methods have a large part in this positive development. Particularly in the area of hypertension, the good supply of medicines contributes substantially to the fact that fewer people die from cardiac arrests and strokes."

Cornelia Yzer, the VFA's chief executive, said: "this [data] shows that hardly any another industry sector makes as central a contribution to the extension of life-expectancy as the research-based pharmaceutical enterprises." She also said that the topic of an aging population is "still to a large extent preoccupied with fear." However, not only are people living longer, but new drugs allow citizens to lead more productive lives for longer, Ms Yzer argues.