Drug firms call for EU measures to keep supplies flowing

The head of Europe’s drug industry has written to EU leaders ahead of their summit this week, seeking major concessions to help keep supplies of medicines flowing to crisis-hit states.

Faced with price cuts and billions in unpaid bills, firms want two measures to prevent discounts offered in Southern Europe from being exported to rich states in the north.

In a forthright letter, GlaxoSmithKline CEO Andrew Witty, who heads Europe’s pharmaceuticals association, says failure to ring-fence austerity cuts will undermine a sector that employs 660,000.