Greece has a choice to make

Across Europe, an important dialogue is underway about the future of healthcare. Through the European campaign “Europe has a choice to make,” EFPIA calls on countries to decide whether they will invest in innovation, research, and timely patient access to new therapies, or accept an environment where patients wait longer for new medicines, research investments decline, and Europe risks falling behind in medical progress.

In Greece, this question is more relevant than ever. Today in our country, only 1 in 5 innovative medicines reaches patients on time, while waiting times for access to new therapies far exceed the European average.

At the same time, total pharmaceutical expenditure is increasing, but public funding is not keeping pace: per capita public spending on medicines in Greece remains significantly lower than in other Southern European countries.

Meanwhile, Europe invests approximately €55 billion annually in Research & Development, while Greece absorbs only a small share of these investments, thus failing to leverage the multiple benefits of clinical research for patients, the scientific community, and the economy.

Through the campaign “Greece has a choice to make,” SfEE highlights this critical turning point for the healthcare system and pharmaceutical policy, posing a clear question:

Will we, as a country, invest in a modern and financially sustainable healthcare system that encourages innovation, strengthens research, and ensures timely patient access to new therapies? Or will we allow long-standing structural problems to persist, seriously impacting both the healthcare system and patients themselves?

The future of healthcare is not a given.

It is a choice.