DT News - UK - European Medicines Agency leaves London ahead of Brexit

Dental Tribune International

Wed. 30 January 2019

save

LONDON, UK: A key European Union agency responsible for the monitoring of medicines for dental and medical patients has relocated its headquarters from London to Amsterdam in the Netherlands as a result of Brexit. The move comes as negotiations regarding the UK’s exit from the EU continue to stall ahead of the scheduled exit date of 29 March this year.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA), which scientifically evaluates, supervises and monitors the safety of medicines in the EU, closed its doors for the final time in London last Friday. Though it organises scientific committees picked from thousands of experts across Europe to conduct these evaluations, a staff of 900 carries out EMA’s day-to-day work. Its work is conducted in conjunction with each EU member state’s competent authority responsible for human medicines.

After a referendum held on 23 June 2016 saw the citizens of the UK vote for the nation to withdraw from the EU, EMA opted to relocate its operations to one of the remaining 27 EU member states. A vote on where EMA should be moved was held towards the end of 2017, and Amsterdam was chosen over 18 other cities, including Copenhagen and Bratislava, to be EMA’s new home.

Through the work of EMA, dental and medical patients in the EU have regularly gained access to pharmaceuticals more than six months faster than patients in countries like Australia and Canada, which both regulate drugs nationally. If EMA’s rulings and guidance are deemed inapplicable in the UK post-Brexit, pharmaceutical companies may have to apply separately to the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for approval, leading to slower access to these medicines.

“Today, EMA staff lowered the 28 EU flags and symbolically said goodbye to their London offices. [EMA Executive Director] Guido Rasi expressed his thanks to the UK for its contribution to the work of the agency and for having been a gracious host of EMA since 1995,” tweeted the official account of EMA last Friday.

In general, the issue of pharmaceutical medicines has become a contentious one in Brexit discussions, with fears that a “no-deal” Brexit will lead to UK citizens being unable to access medicines that are manufactured in the remaining EU member states. Currently, more than half of the medicines prescribed for dental and medical patients in the UK originate from EU countries.

“The focus of pharmaceutical companies is on making sure that medicines and vaccines get to patients whatever the Brexit outcome,” said Mike Thompson, Chief Executive of the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, in a statement.

“This includes stockpiling and duplicating manufacturing processes here and in Europe. We continue to work as closely as possible with government on ‘no-deal’ planning,” he continued.

“But we reiterate that ‘no deal’ would prove to be extremely challenging. With time running out we hope parliament will come together and quickly find a solution to the stalemate and reassure patients that medicines will not be disrupted come March 2019,” Thompson concluded.

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt Hancock assuaged fears on Monday at a hearing regarding the future of the UK’s health service: “We have been through detailed line-by-line analysis of the 12,000 medicines that are licensed in the UK … in order to ensure that there is a plan for the continuity of supply for all medicines in the event of a ‘no-deal’ Brexit.”

“The thing is that medicines will be prioritised in the event of a ‘no-deal’ Brexit,” he added.

Tags:

To post a reply please login or register

Survey demonstrates UK doctors’ negative opinion of Brexit

LONDON, UK: More than two years after a national referendum resulted in the UK electorate voting to leave the EU, Brexit remains entrenched in the ...

Company director of London dental practice disqualified

LONDON, UK: The UK’s Insolvency Service in London has announced its disqualification of the director of a London-based dental clinic. India-born Dr ...

Highlights of London Dentistry Show and new dates

LONDON, UK: The London Dentistry Show is the city’s most successful dental show. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the organisers of the event ...

Review leaves researchers gagging for evidence on reflex management

MANCHESTER, UK/MELAKA, Malaysia: The use of sedatives, acupuncture or behavioural therapies are just some of the strategies recommended to dental ...

Rights of EU citizens after the Brexit: An unresolved issue

Through the UK’s impending exit from the European Union, much uncertainty has been created around the position of EU citizens in the country, ...

Dental Tribune survey sees majority of British dentists rejecting Brexit

LONDON, UK: Were it up to dentists, the UK would remain a member of the European Union after the national referendum in June. According to an online survey ...

Glass ionomer cements at the centre of London meeting

LONDON, UK: Glass ionomer cements have significantly advanced in the last decade and have become a viable option for restorative dental treatment. Next ...

World Federation of Orthodontists to hold congress in London

LONDON, UK: The International Orthodontic Congress (IOC) is held once every five years and offers up to 10,000 orthodontists and allied professionals a ...

Dentistry Show London returns to ExCeL on 6 and 7 October 2023

LONDON, UK: As 2023 has progressed, dental professionals across London and beyond have been eagerly awaiting Dentistry Show London, and now it is nearly ...

Brexit—What can dentistry expect?

Time flies, doesn’t it? It seemed that the British government and the EU had all the time in the world to agree to terms for leaving and a potential ...

Education

Live webinar
Fri. 26 April 2024
5:00 pm UTC (London)