Barcelona - Thomas Schinecker, chief executive of Roche, said Europe risks losing ground to the United States and China in pharmaceutical research because of what he described as ‘‘mind-blowing’’ bureaucracy and policy choices that threaten jobs and innovation.
Schinecker spoke to Reuters on Thursday as drugmakers digest potential consequences of a U.S. policy aimed at linking certain medicine prices in the United States to lower prices charged in other countries, including those in Europe. Since the U.S. policy was introduced in May of last year, an analysis by GlobalData found that new drug launches in Europe have fallen by around a third.
"Europe is so far behind and in most industries, I’m sad to say, they’ve lost the race," Schinecker said, adding that what he called "illogical" regulation was hampering innovation and undermining one of the region’s remaining industrial strengths. He emphasized that pharma remains an area where Europe can still compete, but only if policymakers make different decisions.
Industry executives have publicly pressed European governments as the U.S. pricing push reshapes the market. U.S. President Donald Trump has criticized European governments for what he views as insufficient spending on medicines. AstraZeneca chief Pascal Soriot this week warned that Germany’s plans to constrain pharmaceutical spending risk could lead to the country missing out on new medicines and leave Europe operating merely as a "sales office" for drugmakers.
The European Commission said it is watching the U.S. pricing policy closely but reiterated that patient access and affordability remain priorities. The head of the European Medicines Agency told Reuters this week that drug access across the bloc continues to be strong.
Roche and peers remain committed to European launches
Despite his warning about Europe’s policy environment, Schinecker said Roche aims to launch its new medicines across every European market. He noted ongoing discussions with governments in Germany, Britain, France and Italy on pricing arrangements and incentives intended to support innovation.
Roche is preparing to bring forward giredestrant, a breast cancer therapy it hopes could secure U.S. regulatory approval by the end of this year. Schinecker said wealthier nations should shoulder a "fair share" of the costs of innovation to allow continued investment in research while maintaining access for lower-income markets, and he described the reasoning behind the U.S. administration’s pricing stance as sensible.
Sanofi also affirmed its commitment to launching new medicines in Europe. Francois-Xavier Roger, Sanofi’s chief financial officer, said on a media call that while the company intends to bring to Europe any product it launches elsewhere, U.S. pricing policy changes would prompt the company to "revisit a little bit the way we do it" and could lead to some price increases.
Executives’ comments reflect tensions between protecting patient access and preserving the commercial incentives companies say are necessary to fund drug discovery. As governments and regulators debate pricing and reimbursement strategies, drugmakers are signaling that policy choices in major markets will influence launch sequencing and pricing conversations.
Key takeaways:
- Roche’s CEO warns that European bureaucracy and regulation could erode the region’s competitiveness in pharmaceutical R&D.
- U.S. pricing proposals tying U.S. medicine prices to lower international prices have coincided with a drop of about one-third in new drug launches in Europe since May last year, according to GlobalData.
- Major drugmakers including Roche and Sanofi say they plan to continue launching new medicines in Europe but are engaging with governments on pricing and may reconsider approaches in response to U.S. policy changes.