European Medicines Agency sets out work priorities for 2011

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) will focus on preparing for the implementation of the new pharmacovigilance legislation during 2011, while continuing to carry out its core business efficiently and effectively, according to the work program 2011, published on Friday.

The work program states that the pharmacovigilance legislation, which comes into force in 2012, will have a major impact on the Agency's work, and that the EMA will be affected by the ongoing debate within European institutions on the upcoming falsified medicines legislation.

The document also explains that the Agency expects to see a further increase in the number of procedures it handles this year, but will remain focused on carrying out its core business of monitoring the benefits and risks of medicines. This work will continue amid the changes that the new legislative requirements will bring over the course of the year.