Europe's Innovation Crisis Is a Warning Sign for America: A Conversation with Kelly Anderson of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce
- Jun 25
- 2 min read
We Work For Health's Executive Director Dan Leonard recently sat down with Kelly Anderson, the Vice President of International Policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Innovation Policy Center, to discuss the consequences of pharmaceutical price controls in Europe and why the U.S. should avoid making those same mistakes.
As policymakers in Washington consider policies such as MFN price controls, Anderson provides a timely and analytical perspective on what's at stake for patients and American innovation leadership.
Here are some highlights from their conversation.
Europe's Decline Is a Result of Deliberate Policy Choices
The end of European biopharmaceutical dominance is a result of decades of government-imposed price controls that suppressed returns on R&D investment.
Kelly explains how Europe's shift toward stringent government price controls dismantled its once-dominant position. In 1990, biopharmaceutical R&D investment in Europe was significantly higher than in the United States. But decades of price controls imposed by governments on the continent was one of the leading factors that drove away investment.
The consequences for patients have been stark: Today, 40% of medicines launched in the U.S. never reach European markets, and patients in some countries wait an average of 500 days to access new treatments.
Germany Doubles Down on Price Controls
While some European governments are starting to reverse course, others such as Germany are doubling down on price controls. Anderson points to Germany, historically a cornerstone of biopharmaceutical innovation, as a prime example: rather than easing cost-containment policies, it is pursuing even tougher price control measures. At the same time, the EU is moving to weaken key intellectual property protections, undermining the very framework that supports high‑risk, high‑capital investments in new medicines.
Together, these trends also signal that global investment, clinical trials, and manufacturing will continue to shift away from Europe to markets like the United States and China that are competing aggressively for biopharma leadership.
Policymakers Mustn’t Repeat Europe’s Mistakes
MFN pricing would adopt the framework that led to the end of European biopharmaceutical dominance. Anderson argues that R&D is a necessity for sustainable patient access, and that the U.S. should double down on the market-based system and strong IP protections that made it the world's leader rather than replicate the policies that cost Europe its edge.
Watch the full conversation with Kelly Anderson to learn more about what Europe's experience means for U.S. drug pricing policy and what's at stake for American patients.