Then and now
Our story
From a citizens’ petition about medicine supply to a broader conversation about responsible production and access.
We began with supply security
The original Safety for Citizens campaign called attention to the vulnerability of medicine supply chains and argued for more regional resilience. Its petition and campaign materials remain available in our archive.
The policy debate has moved
Medicine shortages and supply resilience are now prominent in European policy. The European Commission proposed a Critical Medicines Act in March 2025. The Council and Parliament reached a provisional agreement in May 2026; that agreement still required formal adoption at the time of this page’s preparation.
The EU’s wider pharmaceutical reform also addresses shortages, access and environmental impact. These developments show why the topic matters; they do not establish that our petition caused any policy change.
European Commission: Critical Medicines Act proposal · Council: provisional agreement · Council: pharmaceutical package
We go further
Security of supply is necessary, but it cannot answer every question. The next chapter asks where medicines are produced, how production affects people and the planet, who receives economic value, and who can actually obtain treatment.