March 2026 Data (April Edition)

Section A: The Themes Hidden in March's Lobbying Data

EU Pharma Package Drives Surge in Industry Lobbying

In March 2026, lobbying by pharmaceutical companies such as AstraZeneca, MEDICINES FOR EUROPE, and Teva notably increased, coinciding with the publication of the EU Council's final texts on the 2026 Pharma Package. This regulatory overhaul, which revamps market protection, orphan drug incentives, and supply policies, catalyzed sustained advocacy—evident in meetings between MEDICINES FOR EUROPE and both Comm Varhelyi (Health and Animal Welfare) and Direct. Gen. Industry and SMEs, as well as discussions involving AstraZeneca with Pres von der Leyen—around innovation incentives and sector competitiveness.

📎 EU Council Publishes Final 2026 Pharma Package: New Regulatory ...

New Rules for Generics and Orphan Medicines Fuel Policy Engagement

The EU's sweeping revision of pharmaceutical legislation finalized in March introduces a new tiered system for generics and orphan medicines, a move closely tracked by organizations representing both originators and generics, including the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations and MEDICINES FOR EUROPE. The changes have prompted a wave of sector engagement, as reflected by the many direct interactions between generics associations such as Teva Pharmaceuticals Europe BV and Commission officials from Direct. Gen. Industry and SMEs and Direct. Gen. Health and Animal Welfare, with lobbying activity exceeding long-term trends.

📎 EUROPE - Major Regulatory Developments in Pharmaceuticals ...

Critical Medicines Act Prompts Supply Chain Advocacy

The Commission’s prioritization of the Critical Medicines Act in early 2026 has coincided with heightened lobbying, particularly from organizations such as the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations and MEDICINES FOR EUROPE, advocating for security of supply and reduced medicine shortages in discussions with Direct. Gen. Industry and SMEs. These policy moves have drawn in not only pharmaceutical manufacturers, including Merck, but also groups from elderly and disability care sectors aiming to influence implementation of new resilience measures.

📎 EU regulatory shifts for Healthcare and Life Sciences in 2026

Parliamentary Support Spurs Stakeholder Mobilization

Endorsement of the Pharma Package by the European Parliament's Public Health Committee in March 2026 has spurred increased outreach by pharmaceutical associations such as the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations and MEDICINES FOR EUROPE, as well as patient advocacy groups. Engagements with key officials, including Comm Varhelyi (Health and Animal Welfare), now focus on access, affordability, and incentivizing European pharmaceutical innovation amid expectations of major regulatory change.

📎 Overview of EU Pharmaceutical Package Reform and Implications

Section B: Lobbying Activity by Industry

This section compares, by industry, the lobbying activity with the European Commission last month to its historical average.

Industry Lobbying Activity, March 2026

In March 2026, 6 industries from this sector were active in lobbying meetings with the European Commission, led by Pharmaceutical preparations.

Industries running notably above their historical average this month include Pharmaceutical preparations, Elderly and Disability Care, and Senior & Disability Social Work.

On the quieter side, Other Social Work w/o Accommodation, Other Human Health, and Medical and Dental Instruments saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section C: Lobbying by Industry for the Past Year

To contextualize Section B, this chart shows the residual trajectory of the same top industries from Section B over the past 12 months — the deviation from what would be expected after accounting for seasonal patterns and the overall trend. Persistent above-zero values indicate sustained over-activity; persistent below-zero values indicate sustained quiet periods.

Industry Lobbying Residuals, March 2026

This chart shows the 6 industries in this sector with the largest deviations from expected lobbying activity in March 2026. Positive values run above their seasonal trend, negative values below.

Pharmaceutical preparations saw lobbying notably above expected levels this month.

Other Human Health, Elderly and Disability Care, Medical and Dental Instruments, Other Social Work w/o Accommodation, and Senior & Disability Social Work saw lobbying notably below expected levels this month.

Section D: Lobbying Activity by Organization

In this section, we see the organizations with the most unusual lobbying behavior last month, defined by either unusually high or unusually low lobbying activity.

Organization Lobbying Activity, March 2026

In March 2026, 30 organizations from this sector took part in 43 lobbying meetings with the European Commission.

The organizations with the most notable increases in lobbying activity this month include MEDICINES FOR EUROPE, Teva Pharmaceuticals Europe BV, Baxter, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company, and AstraZeneca PLC.

On the quieter side, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, SANOFI, and MedTech Europe saw notably less lobbying activity than usual.

New to the sector's lobbying records this month: Laboratoires Basi France and Fondazione Opera San Francesco Saverio Collegio Universitario Aspiranti Medici Missionari - Medici con l'Africa C.U.A.M.M.

Section E: Lobbying of Government Institutions in the Past Month

Every lobbying meeting takes place with one of two types of European Commission body: a Commissioner's cabinet (political staff) or a Directorate-General (the civil service). This section shows the organisation-to-institution pairings with the most unusual lobbying activity last month, defined by the largest absolute difference between this month's meeting count and the pair's 12-month rolling average.

Lobbying of Commission Institutions, March 2026 vs 12-Month Avg

In March 2026, 30 organisations from this sector met with 20 Commission bodies across 43 meetings — split across 11 Commissioner cabinets and 9 Directorates-General.

Notable increases in lobbying activity this month include AstraZeneca PLC with Comm Roswall (Environment).

On the quieter side, Merck Sharp & Dohme Europe Belgium SRL with Comm Varhelyi (Health and Animal Welfare) saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section F: Organization Lobbying by Subject in the Past Month

This section shows the organisation-to-subject pairings with the most unusual lobbying activity last month. Subjects are classified from each meeting's title text into one of 19 EU policy areas. A meeting covering multiple topics counts toward each of them.

Lobbying by Subject, March 2026 vs 12-Month Avg

In March 2026, 28 organisations from this sector lobbied on 8 policy topics across 43 meetings. Meetings may touch multiple topics, so subject totals can exceed total meetings.

Topics with notably elevated lobbying activity this month include CSL on Healthcare, AstraZeneca PLC on Environment, Teva Pharmaceuticals Europe BV on Environment, GLOBAL HEALTH ADVOCATES on Healthcare, and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company on Healthcare.

On the quieter side, MedTech Europe on Healthcare and International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies on Foreign Affairs saw notably less lobbying activity than their historical average.

Section G: Most-Lobbied Officials

This section lists the most-frequent lobbying touchpoints between this sector's organisations and individual European Commission officials last month, compared to each pairing's average over the past year.

Most-Lobbied Officials, March 2026

In March 2026, 38 European Commission officials took part in 43 meetings with this sector's lobbyists.

The most-frequent meetings this month were European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations and Stephane Sejourne at EVP Sejourne (Industry and SMEs), AstraZeneca PLC and Jessika Roswall at Comm Roswall (Environment), Pharma Deutschland e.V and Jessika Roswall + 1 other at Comm Roswall (Environment), CSL and Oliver Varhelyi + 4 others at Comm Varhelyi (Health and Animal Welfare), and Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and Oliver Varhelyi at Comm Varhelyi (Health and Animal Welfare).

Most activity came from Cabinet members (41 meetings), followed by Commissioner (8) and Head of Unit (8).