New EFPIA president, Christopher Viehbacher, calls for strengthened collaboration to deliver health and growth

Christopher Viehbacher, chief executive of French drug major Sanofi (Euronext: SAN), was elected president of the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA), for a two-year term. Joining him at the head of the EFPIA board will be two newly elected vice presidents, Roch Doliveux, CEO of Belgium’s UCB, and Joseph Jimenez, CEO of Swiss pharma major Novartis.

Stepping into his role as the new president of the EFPIA, Mr Viehbacher called on the European Union, member states and industry to work together in facing Europe’s economic and social challenges. He emphasized the pharmaceutical industry’s potential to help revive Europe’s economy while improving the quality of life for its people, and outlined the EFPIA’s priorities for the industry.

“I am extremely honored by this election that comes at a time when Europe needs a different approach to health care,” declared Mr Viehbacher, adding: “As an industry, we will continue to put patients first by delivering innovative, life-changing medicines that address unmet medical needs. But given the chronic deficits of health care systems, we must work differently, build collaborative policies and combine our strengths at both national and European levels. As we want Healthcare to be a growth engine for Europe, our industry must focus on three priorities: patient access, science & innovation and competitiveness.”