Sweden's research-based pharmaceutical industry association, Lif, has published a pre-election survey indicating broad parliamentary support for changes to how new medicines are financed, valued and introduced. The survey covered 303 parliamentary candidates from all eight parties and all 21 regions, alongside responses from all eight parliamentary party offices.
All eight party offices supported greater central-government responsibility for financing and introducing new medicines, with a corresponding reduction in regional responsibility. Seven supported a national target for the time from EU marketing authorisation to patient access. Seven also supported increasing public spending on new medicines as a share of GDP.
Valuation emerged as a further area of convergence. Seven parties supported taking broader socioeconomic effects into account in price and reimbursement decisions, including effects on ability to work, sickness absence and use of other health and care services. This would broaden the factors considered beyond the patient benefit, disease severity and healthcare costs that are central to current TLV assessment.
The survey coincides with an existing government review of Swedish medicines valuation. In June, the government asked the Dental and Pharmaceutical Benefits Agency (Tandvårds- och läkemedelsförmånsverket, TLV) to examine whether changing willingness to pay could affect access to cost-effective medicines and pharmaceutical-benefit expenditure, with a final report due in December.
The Lif findings do not themselves change financing or reimbursement policy, but they place greater national financing responsibility, access-time measurement and broader valuation criteria within the policy options receiving support across most parliamentary parties.
Source: Lif
Link: Bred politisk enighet om ny läkemedelspolitik efter valet (Broad political agreement on new medicines policy after the election)
Date: 7 September 2026
Source: Ministry of Health and Social Affairs
Link: Regeringen ändrar TLV:s uppdrag – ska även analysera betalningsvilja för läkemedel (Government changes TLV's assignment – it must also analyse willingness to pay for medicines)
Date: 18 June 2026
