35,000 new patients treated, 18,000 jobs created, and three million sick days avoided: the benefits of meeting EU targets for attracting clinical trials
These are the five-year figures estimated by a new study on the economic impact of industry-sponsored clinical research in the EU, published in Frontiers in Economics for the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA).
Spain is the country that initiated the most studies in 2025, but together with Europe, it faces the challenge of competing in the global biomedical race.
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Clinical trials provide new therapeutic solutions for patients, while generating quality jobs, funding for healthcare systems, and other economic and social benefits. In Europe, a new study (Frontiers in Economics for the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations) quantifies the value of clinical trials in these terms, as well as their potential if the targets set by the European Union last October to attract more clinical trials to Europe are met.
The target set by the European Commission, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the Heads of Medicines Agencies (HMA) is an 11% increase in trials (100 more per year over the next five years). If this target is met, the study estimates that 35,000 more patients would have access to clinical trials, 18,000 new jobs would be created, and three million days of sick leave would be avoided. In economic terms, the systems could obtain additional funding of €4 billion per year.
In addition to this scenario of increased trials in line with EU targets, the report proposes two further scenarios. If Europe were to recover the ‘lost trials’ since 2013 (increasing them by 25%), this would mean an additional €8.9 billion in gross value added and 79,000 more opportunities for patients to participate in clinical trials.
The third scenario, in which Europe manages to increase clinical trial activity by 50% (catching up with the United States and China), the study estimates that 158,000 new patients could participate in clinical studies and that €17.9 billion would be returned to the European economy.
What clinical trials in Europe contribute today
The analysis reviews the importance of Europe regaining its share of trials in an environment of strong global competition (especially from the US and China), but also reviews the current contribution of clinical research today. Specifically, the research estimates the annual economic value of trials across the European Economic Area at €35.7 billion: €21.7 billion from the activity itself, €3.6 billion from other R&D benefits, and €10.4 billion from improved labor productivity thanks to the prevention of 26.9 million sick days. In Spain, the increase in productivity prevents 3.4 million days of sick leave and generates a total economic impact of €2.5334 billion.
Clinical trials generate more than 45,000 direct jobs in Europe, and another 120,000 indirect and induced jobs.
Objective: to restore biomedical competitiveness in Europe
Europe’s share of global clinical trials fell from 22% in 2013 to 12% in 2023. However, the number of trials worldwide has increased by almost 60% over this period, and China’s share has risen from 8% to 18%.
In terms of R&D overall, Europe has lost 25% of its share of biomedical R&D over the last two decades. While EU R&D investment grew by an average of 4.4% per year between 2010 and 2022, growth in the United States was 5.5% and in China 20.7%.
Some European initiatives, such as ACT EU, have helped to strengthen the European ecosystem, and others, such as the future EU Biotechnology Law, are expected to help regain leadership in clinical research and biotechnology innovation.
Nathalie Moll, CEO of Efpia, states that “conducting clinical trials in Europe offers only health and economic benefits for patients and society. Meeting the EU’s targets should be the absolute minimum we aspire to. A dynamic research and development ecosystem will lead to better health outcomes for Europeans, more sustainable and resilient healthcare systems, and significant economic growth. Other countries have recognized this and taken action; it is time for Europe to choose to do the same.”
Spain, spearheading Europe
Last year, Spain authorized 962 clinical trials with drugs, a record number that places our country as the European leader with the highest number of authorized trials, as well as the one that does so in a greater diversity of therapeutic areas.
Spain’s success, which was already highlighted in the report Evaluating the Clinical Trials Ecosystem in Europe, is mainly due to the implementation of the European Clinical Trials Regulation (CTR), which Spain was a pioneer in adopting in 2016. The report highlighted that Spain has adopted a proactive, coordinated, and cross-cutting approach to building its clinical trial ecosystem, driven by increased investment.
“In Spain, we have worked in coordination with all the agents involved and have achieved results that place us at the forefront of Europe, but we continue to expand our challenges to maintain and consolidate that leadership, such as promoting trials in primary care, decentralized and networked clinical trials, and projects for the use of data and digitization in this area. International competition is very strong, and we need to continue innovating, with the support of the government and other stakeholders, to regain leadership in the global race for biomedical innovation,” says Amelia Martín Uranga, Director of Clinical and Translational Research at Farmaindustria.
The importance of clinical trials
Clinical trials provide patients with access to potentially life-saving therapies 10 to 15 years before they become widely available, while strengthening the health systems that deliver that care. By integrating research into routine clinical practice, trials contribute to better therapeutic decisions, accelerate the adoption of innovations, and improve outcomes for patients, including those who do not participate directly in studies.
Achieving the projected increase in trial activity would represent a significant step toward restoring Europe’s clinical research ecosystem after a decade of decline, benefiting European patients, healthcare systems, and the economy as a whole.
