Produced between August 2020 and February 2022 by OTMeds, this document is the final and updated version of a document presented to the press on October 1st. In August 2020, the GNEN/GL parliamentary group in the European Parliament commissioned OTMeds to produce an independent report on the opportunities for pharmaceutical relocation in Europe or in the Member States. The parliamentary group was not involved in the production of the report.

This report produced between 2020 and 2022 by OTMeds exposes the shortcomings of the current pharmaceutical system and its consequences in terms of the sustainability of health systems and access to care for people. It studies the possibilities and methods of relocating pharmaceutical production in the European Union and its Member States. The observation is made of the influence of consulting firms and lobbies on public policies, pushing for public policies that run counter to public interests. The main conclusions of the report are the absolute need to establish transparency in the medicine chain to guide industrial policy, condition public aid granted to pharmaceutical companies, and aim for price negotiations based on much more rational criteria. The report also notes that a relocation that would take place only under current market conditions, based on the principle of supply and demand, would be doomed to failure, which is why the report studies also other public production models, for essential medicines in particular, which have been the subject of stock shortages or supply tensions for the past ten years. Finally, the report highlights the importance of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) production. Relocating part of the production without tackling the issue of API is missing the main issues. This bulk production policy must also incorporate the ethical and environmental dimension linked to the pollution inherent in this type of production. All these complex questions are addressed in this report, which is based on research work and the hearing of some fifteen experts in various fields and a review of the literature.