Affordable Medicines Europe is an association representing Europe’s licensed independent distributors of medicines, an integral part of the European pharmaceutical market. Our members work every day to mitigate medicine shortages and make medicines more affordable and accessible for European healthcare systems and patients. Independent distribution adds value to society by bringing price competition in the pharmaceutical market and generating considerable direct and indirect savings for healthcare systems.
In the Single Market, independent distributors of medicines can buy pharmaceuticals in any EU or EEA country and under strictly regulated conditions transport, repackage and resell them in another. This activity is called parallel export and import of medicines, and it is possible because of differences in medicine prices between different countries of the EU and EEA. Independent distribution is the only legitimate form of competition in branded medicines.
Read more
Read more
Prices of medicines between EU and EEA countries vary. For example, a product may be lower priced in Germany or Sweden than in Poland or France. Another product may conversely be lower priced in France than in Germany. Independent distributors find excess stocks of medicines in one country and import these medicines at a lower price into another country. This creates competition in the pharmaceutical market and leads to significant savings for healthcare systems: we save European healthcare payers and patients €5-7 billion every year.
Read more
Different EU countries are facing shortages of medicines, and the problem has been exacerbated over the last few years. Most shortages are national or local, not pan-European, and products that are in shortages in one country, can be in excess supply in another. Parallel imports of medicines serve as a de facto solidarity mechanism within the EU and EEA, facilitating the redistribution of medicines in shortage by transporting excess stocks from countries to others where they are needed, improving patient access to medicines.
Read more
Affordable Medicines Europe is the European association that represents Europe’s licensed independent distributors of medicines, an integral part of the European pharmaceutical market. Independent distribution adds value to society by bringing price competition in the pharmaceutical market and generating considerable direct and indirect savings for healthcare systems. Our members work every day to mitigate medicine shortages and make medicines more affordable and accessible for European healthcare systems and patients.
Through the direct membership of 18 national associations and individual companies, Affordable Medicines Europe’s has 105 member companies in 19 EU and EEA Member States and the UK. These members account for approximately 80% of the total parallel import market volume in the area. In total, the industry amounts to annual sales of 6.6 billion euros. Membership of Affordable Medicines Europe is exclusive to companies holding a wholesale license (Good Distribution Practices), no matter if they undertake export or import activities. Additionally, all importing members are Good Manufacturing Practices licensed. All our members also sign up to the code of conduct of Good Parallel Distribution Guidelines and are subject to internal audits by Affordable Medicines Europe.
Affordable Medicines Europe is managed from Brussels by our Secretariat. The association is governed by its Working Groups, Board of Directors and General Assembly that takes place twice a year.
Affordable Medicines Europe illustrates its efforts to alleviate medicine shortages through #FillTheGap. #FillTheGap presents successful examples of how independent distribution of medicines has mitigated shortages and improved patient access to medicines. Read more by clicking the below link to the website or by following the campaign @FillTheGap_EU on X.
