The novel coronavirus outbreak isn’t causing problems for Europe’s medicines supply — yet. That’s almost certain to change, industry experts warn.
“So far we have had no indication” of long-term problems for medicines availability, said Thomas Cueni, head of the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers & Associations .Several factors related to the outbreak can disrupt the supply. Factory closures and worker quarantines to prevent the spread of the disease are an obvious issue. Then there’s the potential shutdown of shipping infrastructure from the region, or extra controls on imports and exports.
The Chinese government faces a “Catch-22 situation,” he said. “On the one hand, they have to keep the economy going. On the other hand, they’re taking very severe measures to try and contain the spread of the virus.” A drop-off in generics doesn’t just affect costs. The off-patent sector dominates the supply of some essential medicines, including 80 percent of prescription antibiotics. And a shortage of medicines that aren’t absolutely necessary could still cause widespread human misery: As both the flu and the flu-like COVID-2019 reach their peaks, the supply of cough and cold meds could be interrupted.
In Europe, it's up to often private companies called notified bodies to verify the safety and efficacy of medical devices. Part of their job is to audit factories, and that process is already facing disruption.Oversight authorities already have afor extraordinary circumstances, like wars or major weather events or pandemics — and that’s kicking in for the coronavirus, said Gary Slack, an executive at BSI, one of Europe’s largest notified bodies.
Indeed, van den Hoven, the generics lobbyist, pointed to some imminent concerns that need EU attention.
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