02413nas a2200349   4500000000100000008004100001260001200042653001100054653001100065653002400076653001100100653001900111653002400130653003200154653001800186100001600204700001500220700001200235700001400247700002200261700002200283700001400305700002000319700001400339700001500353245014400368856006700512300000800579490000700587520145500594022001402049       2026                            d  c04/202610aAccess10aEquity10aEssential medicines10aEurope10aHealth systems10aInfectious diseases10aNeglected Tropical Diseases10aPublic health1 aRavinetto R1 aBottieau E1 aFusco D1 aMarrone R1 aVan Den Broucke S1 aTarrafeta-Sayas M1 aRinaldi L1 aLosada-Galvan I1 aCalleri G1 aAlbonico M00aInequitable access to medicines for neglected tropical diseases in Europe: health system vulnerabilities and a call for coordinated action.  uhttps://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12934290/pdf/main.pdf  a1-40 v633 a<p>The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the vulnerability of the European medicine supply systems, but the lack of access to medicines for diseases of poverty, including neglected tropical diseases (NTDs), is unfrequently brought to the attention of the European policy makers. As a result, clinicians in Europe are forced to "bricolage solutions" to treat NTDs:  donations from companies, product-specific donations via the World Health Organization (WHO) or WHO collaborating centres, case-by-case importation -sometimes from poorly regulated countries-, and possibly the recourse to compounding pharmacies. Noteworthy, NTDs are unlikely to decrease in the next years in Europe, due to increasing global mobility, and climate change expanding the parasites' habitat. This serious but neglected problem was discussed at the 2025 European Congress in Tropical Medicine and International Health (ECTMIH) in Hamburg, Germany. This viewpoint analyses the availability, affordability and accessibility challenges in some countries in Europe, and their consequences at patient and health system level. It also proposes a set of interconnected recommendations and policy measures to make quality-assured medicines for NTDs sustainably available and affordable across Europe. Restoring access to these essential and sometimes life-saving medicines is critical for restoring the right to health for all in Europe, while protecting continental public health.</p>  a2666-7762