Help small countries band together to buy medicines, Peter Agius tell EP

Nationalist MEP Peter Agius has submitted proposals to the European Parliament aimed at improving the costs of and access to medicines in Malta. 

The proposals came in the form of several tabled amendments to legislative proposals currently being negotiated in the European Parliament, including changes to joint procurement, packaging and imports of pharmaceuticals from the UK. 

Agius wants to make it easier for smaller countries to band together to buy medicines in bulk, proposing smaller groupings of such countries supported by the European Commission (EC) using a ‘joint public procurement mechanism’.

“The idea is for this to be a variable mechanism; what I’m insisting on is that the mechanism is for smaller member states," he told Times of Malta, explaining that under current rules, there must be a minimum of nine countries in a group to secure EC support.

“Our [Malta’s] problem is we buy small,” he said, noting Malta was therefore less able to take advantage of economies of scale to drive prices down, unlike larger economies.

The Nationalist MEP is also advocating for QR codes – scannable barcodes – to be introduced on medicine packaging to provide instant access to information about the product, helping Malta to import medicines from non-English-speaking EU countries.

He also proposed extending an existing derogation allowing Maltese importers to continue purchasing pharmaceuticals from the UK following Britain’s departure from the EU.

“These proposals are about ensuring that Maltese families have reliable and affordable access to the medicines they need,” Agius said in a statement posted to the website of the European People’s Party group, of which the Nationalist Party is a member.

“We must use Europe’s collective strength to overcome the challenges of scale that small member states like Malta face.”

In January, Agius was appointed to the European Parliament's public health committee.