Here is where we are with the European regulations for the sector of medicines based on medicinal plants.
Madam, Sir,
Your massive mobilization on the subject of the THMPD directive (medicines based on medicinal plants) had an initial result:the European authorities declared that they had understood that they had to make proposals concrete steps to limit the ravages of their directive!
This promise was made during a meeting organized in Brussels on June 21, 2011 by MEP Michèle Rivasi following our petition and the many written questions posed by parliamentarians to the European Commission thanks to you.
The event, titled “Everything you want to know on the TRADITIONAL HERBAL MEDICINE PRODUCTS DIRECTIVE”, was attended by 70 people and provided a great opportunity to submit your signatures to Andrej Ryz , Director of the Public Health Directorate within the DG Health and Consumers of the European Commission.
But the bottom line was clear:so far, the situation is just dire.
Anthony Humphrey, one of the directors of the European Medicines Agency, acknowledged during this meeting that, out of 1351 files that were submitted to obtain traditional plant-based medicines for seven years, the European administration has only accepted... 53 so far.
It's very simple:87% of the files examined were refused. Worse still:concerning the files submitted by France, none have been accepted. Zero. Nothing. Nulla.
So the disaster we predicted is happening, unfortunately.
It should be added to this that the THMPD directive has created a situation of maximum legal uncertainty. As we announced, only the largest pharmaceutical companies, those that employ battalions of full-time lawyers, are equipped to meet the standards.
In artisanal herbal shops in France, or what remains of them, floats a scent of despair. Wholesalers are partly blocked. Nobody knows anymore if they can still distribute plants or herbal preparations. When in doubt, many prefer to abstain.
In April, when the Directive was fully implemented, total confusion set in:some were alarmed; the others wanted to be reassuring.
But everyone has agreed today that, for small players, it's the coffin in the more or less long term.
We accused the big laboratories of doing the trick. But the reality seems even more down-to-earth:in fact, as the roundtable in Brussels revealed, the hard truth is that the European Commission knows nothing about traditional herbal medicines.
She did not know that the manufacture and distribution of medicinal remedies has always been done locally by small economic actors – gatherers, producers, herbalists. So, without realizing it, she wrote a text that amounted to signing their death warrant.
During the meeting, the representatives of the European Commission declared that they would not change the text on their own, but the MEPs present, in particular the MEP French Michèle Rivasi, affirmed that they would seize the file to change the directive, in front of the popular uprising that we caused.
For the IPSN, this means that we must continue our action with MEPs so that they table amendments intended to improve the text.
It will also be necessary to act at the national level. The French administration must urgently clarify its positions; that it says how to understand the text and what health professionals are entitled or not to do.
Finally, each of us can act on a personal level.
First by continuing to inform those around you of the dangers that weigh on everyone's right to choose their medicine.
Then by raising awareness of natural treatments that really heal. Because it is after all the best argument in favor of natural medicines.
A good way to do this is to subscribe to one of the many free information services that exist on the Internet today, which tell you about new discoveries in natural medicine. In particular, there is Jean-Marc Dupuis' newsletter (to subscribe, click on this link). Jean-Marc does essential work to support us by helping us write the articles on the site, www.institut-protection-sante-
It will therefore be up to the IPSN to exercise constant vigilance over what MEPs will propose, while maintaining strong pressure so that we obtain a tangible result on the ground. .
Best regards,
Augustin de Livois
Director
www.institut-protection-sante-naturelle.eu
Institute for the Protection of Natural Health – 253A Chaussée de Wavre – 1050 BRUSSELS
