Due to Britain leaving the European Union, the European Medicines Agency (EMA) will have to relocate from London, and may become inaccessible to staff as a result. Reuters reports "cancer drugs and therapies for rare diseases could be particularly affected by an exodus of key scientific and administrative staff during the move." Depending on the new location, between 19 and 94 percent of staff may leave. Reuters also says that the drug regulator has no back-up plan and would have to shut down if its too inaccessible. This would delay drug approvals and could require Europe to import drugs. What are your thoughts?
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The Brexit has triggered a butterfly effect, whose repercussion in the near future is vast and unknown. One of the casualties is none other than the EMEA. The need of relocating to another EU country will not only be troublesome to the administrative and scientific staff or public safety, but it will also jeopardize the access to cancer drugs, therapies for rare diseases and new medicines, making them even impossible to approve.
Being this such a serious matter, the European Union must not only decide where to headquarter the agency, but should assure that its activity will be by all means protected. Sadly, there is no back up plan, and in the worst case drug approvals would need to halt and Europe might need a new legislation to able to import drugs. This would be absolutely catastrophic, causing a lot of suffering to those who have nothing to do with this matter: the patients.