Nearly two dozen health and consumer advocacy groups are urging the Italian health minister not to replace the head of the Italian medicines agency, who was widely credited with getting the World Health Assembly last May to adopt a resolution for seeking transparency in drug pricing.
In a letter, the groups argued that Dr. Luca Li Bassi, who for the past year has been director general of Agenzia Italiana del Farmaco, or AIFA, is a skilled policy maker who has successfully pursued public health goals, such as championing strategies to make new medical inventions more affordable, and should be allowed to remain in his job.
“Dr. Li Bassi is held in very high regard throughout the global community and within the European Union provides Italy with an important opportunity to advance the most transformative changes to make medical technologies more affordable and more universally available to people who need them,” the groups wrote. “He is a key asset for public health in Italy and for the entire global community.”
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