With China's growing dominance in the biopharma R&D sector, a collection of global pharma leaders took a trip to its neighbor Japan this week to discuss efforts to boost life sciences leadership prospects with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi.
Over 20 pharma leaders from local companies, the U.S. and Europe joined the meeting in Japan, which marked “an important opportunity to discuss the actions needed for Japan to retain its leadership in life sciences,” Roche CEO Thomas Schinecker, Ph.D., who chairs the Biopharmaceutical CEO Roundtable (BCR), said in a May 26 release from global pharma trade group the International Federation of Pharmaceutical Manufacturers and Associations (IFPMA).
“Investment into innovative medicines and vaccines is not only essential for health outcomes, but it is also a strategic investment underpinning Japan’s economic growth, national security and resilience,” Schinecker said. “We must work together to address the current decline in Japan’s share of global biopharmaceutical R&D and ensure that Japanese patients do not face a widening gap in access to life-saving treatments.”
The past decade has seen biopharma companies pour 14 trillion Japanese yen ($87.9 billion) in R&D investments into the country, with more than 1,200 new medicines to show for it, IFPMA points out.
However, policy changes and increasing global competition have contributed to Japan’s “structurally declining” share of global investments, as early-stage pipelines and clinical trial activity continue to shift elsewhere, according to IFPMA.
The U.S.’ Most Favored Nation (MFN) drug pricing policy, which seeks to tie U.S. drug prices to those in certain high-income countries, specifically stands to exacerbate this, putting Japan at a “growing competitive disadvantage,” IFPMA notes. This external pressure, along with “repeated revisions to drug prices rules,” could contribute to the “widening gap” between medicines available to patients in Japan and those in other countries, according to the group.
Given this, the group of global pharma leaders contends that boosting Japan’s government spending on innovative medicines is “core to addressing this gap,” IFPMA contends.
“Japan remains one of the traditional homes of pharmaceutical innovation, and will continue to be central to the future strength of Japan,” Daiichi Sankyo CEO and BCR vice chair Hiroyuki Okuzawa added. “Continued innovation will be critical in successfully tackling demographic change, emerging health challenges and evolving global risks.”
Schinecker further noted in a LinkedIn post that the meeting between Takaichi and her cabinet and the pharma leaders was a “constructive and valuable exchange.”
“Our message was clear: investing into healthcare innovation is vital to Japan’s health outcomes, economic growth and resilience,” Schinecker said.
The “innovation gap” in Japan has been addressed before, when the BCR delegation met with Japanese officials in 2023 to propose a “public-private strategic dialogue” on potential drug pricing reforms and R&D efforts.
These days, however, with high-stakes policy changes and a sweeping interest in Chinese biotech innovation, many countries, such as the U.K. are putting a greater focus on stacking up to the global competition.
U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer was joined by AstraZeneca’s CEO Pascal Soriot for a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier this year, which saw a far-reaching $15 billion investment pledge from AstraZeneca. The company looks to invest in drug discovery, clinical development and manufacturing in China through 2030.