Open letter: EU Health Union and Competitiveness – the Strategic Relevance of the Medical Technology Sector

Open letter: EU Health Union and Competitiveness - the Strategic Relevance of the Medical Technology Sector

Posted on 02.12.2024

In view of the upcoming Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council (EPSCO)meeting on 3 December 2024, MedTech Europehas sent an open letter to Deputy Permanent Representatives of EU Member States, urging an explicit acknowledgement of the strategic relevance of the medical technology sector for health, EU prosperity and competitiveness.

MedTech Europe calls for urgent action to address key challenges facing the sector and to strengthen Europe's global leadership in healthcare innovation. Specifically, we are advocating for the following measures:

• Structural reform of the regulatory framework: Streamline the implementation of the Regulations (EU) 2017/745 and 2017/746 to foster timely and safe innovation launches.

• Policy synchronisation: Align regulatory requirements across different policy domains to reduce legal uncertainty, mitigate fragmentation of the internal market, and reduce regulatory and administrative burden, thereby boosting investor confidence.

• Strategic investments in healthcare systems: Prioritise investments in more efficient and sustainable healthcare systems supported by digital health and medical technologies to reduce the cost of care and help secure Europe's position as a global leader in healthcare innovation and Europe's wider sustainability and digitalisation goals.

• Value-based procurement: Promote procurement practices focused on value, complemented by a joint decarbonisation and competitiveness approach to align Europe's environmental and economic goals.

We hope that EU policymakers will consider these important points during the EPSCO meeting to ensure the continued growth and competitiveness of Europe's medical technology sector.

For further information, please contact Sigrid Linher, Director Sustainability & Environment.