Optimising Procurement of Medicinal Products: A Hands-On Workshop for Procurers and Policymakers

The European Commission’s DG SANTE would like to invite you to express your interest to participate in a Hands-On Workshop for Procurers and Policymakers on Optimising Procurement of Medicinal Products, taking place in Brussels on Tuesday, 26 September 2023, 9h00-17h00. The workshop is one of the follow-up actions of the webinar on Best Practices in Public Procurement that took place on 7 February 2023. 

This closed workshop focuses on the procurement of medicinal products and is specifically designed for procurers and policymakers actively engaged in this field (e.g. hospital procurers, central purchasing bodies, local/regional/national authorities, Ministries of Health,…). The aim of the workshop is to provide support in optimising procurement policies and procedures through best practice exchanges and practical exercises.

Participants will:

• Develop insights into practical implementation of procurement policies, exploring topics such as multiple winner awarding, environmental criteria, criteria for security of supply, MEAT criteria and joint procurement;
• Gain a better understanding how the design of procurement policies and procedures can be aligned with a lifecycle approach;
• Gain a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and needs of suppliers and end-users, and how these factors should be integrated into the design of procurement policies and procedures;
• Learn to develop effective procurement policies and design procedures through engaging with practical case studies and exchanging best practices with peers.

In the morning, there will be a panel on best practices and country experiences in implementing recommendations that are relevant for policy makers and procurers to consider when designing tenders or procurement policies. A second panel discussion will be dedicated to the challenges and needs of suppliers and users.  

 In the afternoon, participants will be able to discuss policy-oriented and operational-oriented fictive case-studies in breakout sessions.   

On the evening before the workshop (25th September), participants will also have the opportunity to network and engage in discussions during an offered social dinner.

For a detailed agenda, we invite you to consult the attached document, accompanied by a Privacy Statement.

Please note that thenumber of participants is limited, and participation will be granted based on an expression of interest. We aim to ensure a diverse representation of Member States and profiles among the selected participants. We may not be able to accommodate all expressions of interest. We advise you not to make any travel arrangements before confirmation of your participation. We will notify you of our decision by the 6th September and provide selected participants with further details regarding their participation and reimbursement of travel costs.

As the logistics of the workshop are being prepared by our external contractor, EUHealthSupport, we kindly ask to contact both SANTE-ATF@ec.europa.eu and contact@euhealthsupport.eu in case you have any questions or would like to receive any additional information.