European drug regulator is criticised over patient representatives’ conflicts of interest

Representatives of patients’ groups sat on the European Medicines Agency’s management board without declaring their ties to the drug industry, an open letter sent to the agency said last week. The agency described the situation as an honest mistake.

The letter, dated 18 June, was sent by the Medicines in Europe Forum and the International Society of Drug Bulletins to the agency’s executive director, Thomas Lönngren.

It was prompted by a report from the Corporate Europe Observatory, a campaign group that aims to expose the power of corporate …