The European Medicines Agency (EMA) protects and promotes human and animal health by evaluating and monitoring medicines within the European Union (EU) and the European Economic Area (EEA).
What it doesThe Agency's main responsibilities are authorising and monitoring medicines in the EU. Companies apply to it for a single marketing authorisation, which is issued by the European Commission. If granted, this enables them to market the medicine concerned throughout the EU and the EEA. Given the wide-ranging scope of the centralised procedure, most genuinely innovative medicines marketed in Europe are authorised by the EMA.
The Agency fulfils its responsibilities by:
facilitating the development of medicines & access to them
evaluating applications for marketing authorisations
monitoring the safety of medicines throughout their lifecycle
providing information to healthcare professionals & patients
Who benefitsThe EMA's work benefits:
patients
healthcare professionals
academics
pharmaceutical companies
medicine developers
health policymakers
Through its scientific guidelines, scientific advice programme and incentives, it facilitates research into new medicines and encourages development, thereby translating progress in medical science into medicines with real health benefits for patients. In particular, it promotes the development of medicines for children and drugs to tackle rare diseases.
Further informationRegulatory information on human medicines
Regulatory information on veterinary medicines
Partners & networks
