Pharmaceutical companies were “disappointed and concerned” at the lack of support offered by the Government to the sector as it pushed back against proposed European Union reforms, correspondence shows.
The pharmaceutical industry has waged a huge lobbying campaign over the last two years with a view to watering down proposed regulations for the sector, which it has warned could cost manufacturing jobs in Ireland and Europe.
Correspondence seen by The Irish Times shows several big pharma companies, such as Pfizer, MSD, Novo Nordisk and AstraZeneca, lobbied the Government to join a pro-industry coalition of EU states to push back against key elements of the reforms.
[ Inside the pharma industry’s lobbying campaign to water down reformsOpens in new window ]
The changes seek to speed up the roll-out of new medicines across the EU, particularly to smaller and poorer countries. The reforms aim to do this by attaching strings to the number of years companies can sell new drugs they produce before cheaper generic competitors can enter the market.
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The industry has sought to block efforts to cut the minimum number of years of market exclusivity firms enjoy after developing new drugs from eight to six years.
Pharmaceutical companies were “disappointed and concerned” at the position Ireland took during the EU negotiations, the head of AstraZeneca’s Irish operation, Alex Wilkes, told the Government in a letter of August 2nd last.
Pfizer’s global executive vice-president, Alexandre de Germay, warned Ireland was “fast becoming an outlier” by not expressing concerns about the proposed reforms. The June 27th letter was sent to now-Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tánaiste Simon Harris during the previous government’s term.
“The best interests of patients, the industrial vitality of Europe, and Ireland’s economic growth hinge on maintaining the integrity of the intellectual property system,” the senior Pfizer executive wrote.
The head of Novo Nordisk’s Irish operation managed to get the ear of Mr Harris in person during last year’s general election campaign.
The encounter with Nina Therese Hovland occurred as the Fine Gael leader was unveiling playground equipment at a school in his Wicklow constituency, which had been funded by the Danish pharma company. In a November 28th letter following up on the encounter in Bray, Ms Hovland said it was “critical” that Ireland picked a side in the pharma debate.
The Irish Pharmaceutical Healthcare Association (Ipha), which represents the sector, called for the Government to align with a group of “like-minded” EU states opposing the changes, which includes Germany, Denmark, France, Sweden and Italy.
The proposed reforms could make companies less likely to invest in research to develop new medicines in Europe, the lobby group told Mr Harris, in a letter on April 9th last.
“It would be short-sighted to assume that manufacturing jobs in Ireland and Europe as a whole will ultimately be unaffected by a reduction in the incentives to invest,” it said.
The correspondence detailing the lobbying efforts of pharmaceutical companies was released to The Irish Times under the Freedom of Information Act.
The proposed overhaul of regulations governing the sector is still being debated at EU level.
A Department of Health spokesman said Ireland wanted the reforms to find “the right balance” between improving access to medicines and supporting industry.
The pharma industry is a major employer in Ireland, with big US multinationals such as Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson and MSD always among the biggest contributors to the State’s corporate tax take.
US president Donald Trump has spoken about his desire to bring investment and jobs created by pharma giants in the State back to the United States. He referenced how Ireland “took” pharma companies away from the US when he hosted Mr Martin at the White House last week.
Pharmaceutical exports make up a significant portion of Ireland’s large flow of trade to the US, meaning both the State and the sector would be exposed if the industry was targeted by Mr Trump in future rounds of import tariffs.
