15/03/2021 – Position paper

Novel excipients are essential for the development of new medicines and vaccines. They foster patient access to innovative and affordable medicines.
Their use can also help to formulate drugs improving their efficacy, quality and safety.

There is currently a lack of regulatory pathway for the independent approval of novel excipients in Europe, which is a strong hindrance to innovation in the development of medicines.
This is highlighted by delays in the approval of COVID-19 vaccines in the EU.

Read the IPEC Europe-EFCG position paper to find out which initiatives we propose to reduce barriers to innovation and complement the Pharmaceutical Strategy for Europe, to increase EU citizens’ access to high-quality and safe medicines as well as increase competitiveness towards other global markets (such as China and USA).