Medicines and environment

The plan requires ambitious environmental goals followed up with strict legislation and decisions at all levels characterized by genuine care for people and nature. Taking environmental effects into account in the generic system, providing guidelines for substitution with more environmentally friendly drugs and letting environmental damage be the basis for prescription designation is such strict regulation. The plan also states that policy must make demands on producers, not rely on their own considerations.

• strict environmental legislationdecisive»miljömål som följs upp med skarp lagstiftning och praktiskt arbete.« (party programme ↗)“environmental goals followed up with strict legislation and practical work.”
• environmental consideration in all decisions»ställning och präglas av genuin omsorg om människor och natur.« (party programme ↗)“position and characterized by genuine care for people and nature.”
• demands on producers»Politiken kan och måste ställa krav på att industrin ställer om« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Policy can and must make demands on industry to transition”
• protection of ecosystems»skapa goda villkor för rika ekosystem, bland annat genom att återställa« (party programme ↗)“create good conditions for rich ecosystems, partly by restoring”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan requires that environmental consideration is built in from the start and that all environmental impact in the form of emissions is minimized, with legislation and economic policy instruments as the most important instruments. Guidelines for switching to more environmentally friendly medicines, a generic system that weighs in environmental effects and prescription practices based on environmental harmfulness are such policy instruments. Medicines' environmental impact is not explicitly mentioned in the plan.

• environmental consideration built in from the startdecisive»Hänsynen till miljöns krav ska byggas in i produktionsprocesserna redan från början.« (party programme ↗)“Environmental consideration must be built into production processes from the beginning.”
• minimize emissions»miljöpåverkan i form av utsläpp och avfallsprodukter ska minimeras.« (party programme ↗)“environmental impact in the form of emissions and waste products must be minimized.”
• instruments in environmental policy»forskningssatsningar, lagstiftning och olika ekonomiska styrmedel är de viktigaste« (party programme ↗)“research investments, legislation and various economic policy instruments are the most important”
• state control of healthcare»Tillsynen av sjukvården ska växlas upp för att garantera kvaliteten.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Supervision of healthcare shall be stepped up to guarantee quality.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme demands that emissions of polluting substances such as pharmaceutical residues are reduced and that strict demands are placed on producers to make products circular and phase out environmentally harmful substances. The plan also sees pharmaceutical consumption as a problem for both patient safety and the environment, and the election manifesto wants to phase out toxic substances immediately. Guidelines for switching to more environmentally friendly medicines, environmental considerations in the generic system and prescription restrictions on environmental grounds follow directly from this.

• reduce pharmaceutical residues in waterdecisive»Utsläpp av miljöstörande ämnen såsom kväve, fosfor, läkemedelsrester« (party programme ↗)“Emissions of polluting substances such as nitrogen, phosphorus, pharmaceutical residues”
• strict demands on producers»producenterna att kretsloppsanpassa nya produkter« (party programme ↗)“producers to make new products circular”
• medicines burden the environment»läkemedelskonsumtionen i dag är ett problem« (party programme ↗)“pharmaceutical consumption today is a problem”
• phase out toxic substances»fasa ut giftiga ämnen omgående, speciellt från produkter för barn.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“phase out toxic substances immediately, especially from products for children.”

The party programme makes a toxin-free environment a fundamental right and warns of chemicals whose effects on humans and nature are harmful or unknown, and the election manifesto wants to save lakes and watercourses from toxins. The plan's steering principle is that it shall be unprofitable to harm the environment, which supports that environmental effects are weighed in the generics system and in prescription charging. Pharmaceutical substances in the environment are however not explicitly mentioned.

• toxin-free waterdecisive»Rädda Sveriges sjöar, vattendrag och hav. Våra barn ska kunna bada utan att utsättas för gifter, nedskräpning eller algblomning.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Save Sweden's lakes, watercourses and seas. Our children shall be able to swim without exposure to toxins, litter or algal blooms.”
• toxin-free environment as a right»Tillgång till rent vatten, ren luft och giftfri miljö är en fundamental rätt för alla människor« (party programme ↗)“Access to clean water, clean air and a toxin-free environment is a fundamental right for all people”
• environmental steering incentives»Det ska alltid vara lönsamt att vara miljövårdande och olönsamt att agera miljöförstörande.« (party programme ↗)“It shall always be profitable to act in an environmentally protective way and unprofitable to cause environmental harm.”
• caution with chemicals»Dagligen används kemikalier och tekniker vars effekter på människan och naturen är skadliga eller okända.« (party programme ↗)“Chemicals and techniques whose effects on humans and nature are harmful or unknown are used daily.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto requires continued measures to prevent pollutants such as pharmaceuticals from spreading in our waters, and the party programme that waste policy prevent pharmaceutical residues from spreading in nature. The counter-proposal's demands for guidelines for switching to more environmentally friendly pharmaceuticals, environmental considerations in the generic system and the possibility of prescribing environmentally harmful pharmaceuticals are steering tools for precisely this, in line with the precautionary principle and with environmental requirements being able to be set in public procurement. The plan does not mention the generic system, so the conclusion is derived.

• stop pharmaceuticals in watersdecisive»Samtidigt behövs fortsatta insatser för att förhindra att skräp och föroreningar, som plast och läkemedel, sprids i våra vatten.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“At the same time continued measures are needed to prevent litter and pollution, such as plastic and pharmaceuticals, from spreading in our waters.”
• prevent pharmaceutical residues in nature»Avfallspolitiken måste förebygga och förhindra att tungmetaller, läkemedelsrester och andra« (party programme ↗)“Waste policy must prevent and stop heavy metals, pharmaceutical residues and other [pollutants]”
• precautionary principle»Kemikalielagstiftningen ska utgå från försiktighetsprincipen.« (party programme ↗)“Chemical legislation shall be based on the precautionary principle.”
• environmental requirements as steering tool»offentlig upphandling ska tydliga miljö-, klimat- och hälsoskyddskrav kunna ställas och långsiktigt« (party programme ↗)“in public procurement clear environmental, climate and health protection requirements can be set and long-term [maintained]”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme makes the substitution principle an important tool, requires that action be grounded in the precautionary principle and that environmental considerations be integrated into all policy areas. Guidelines for switching to less environmentally harmful medicines, environmental considerations in the generics system and prescription owing to environmental harmfulness are applications of exactly this. The requirement for cost-effectiveness in the jointly financed care qualifies but does not break the conclusion.

• the substitution principledecisive»innebär att mindre farliga ämnen så långt möjligt ska« (party programme ↗)“means that less harmful substances as far as possible shall”
• the precautionary principle»agerandet grundas på försiktighetsprincipen« (party programme ↗)“action is grounded in the precautionary principle”
• environmental considerations in all decisions»Hållbar utveckling förutsätter att ekologi, ekonomi och sociala hänsyn integreras.« (party programme ↗)“Sustainable development requires that ecology, economy and social considerations are integrated.”
• cost-effective medicines supply»Den solidariskt finansierade hälso- och sjukvården ska vara ändamålsenlig och kostnadseffektiv, säker för patienterna och baserad på kunskap och beprövad erfarenhet« (party programme ↗)“The jointly financed health and medical care shall be appropriate and cost-effective, safe for patients and based on knowledge and proven experience”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan wants to tackle hazardous substances in water but chooses the technology path: research on and expansion of advanced water treatment. It simultaneously rejects small-scale bans directed at individuals and demands that environmental policy be effective rather than symbolic, while patients should have good access to medicines. Directing doctors' prescribing and controlling medicines based on environmental damage is therefore outside the plan's line.

• water treatment as an instrumentdecisive»Satsa på forskning om vattenrening samt utbyggnad av avancerad vattenrening« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Invest in water treatment research and expansion of advanced water treatment”
• no small-scale bans»Där miljöbovar betalar för sig, men du kan unna dig en plastpåse när du veckohandlar.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Where environmental villains pay for themselves, but you can treat yourself to a plastic bag when you shop.”
• effective, not symbolic environmental policy»Klimatpolitiken får aldrig reduceras till dyrbar symbolpolitik« (party programme ↗)“Climate policy shall never be reduced to expensive symbolic politics”
• access to care and medicines»Alla har rätt till likvärdig vård« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Everyone has the right to equivalent care”

The plan requires that environmental policy seeks the measures that give the most environmental benefit per krona and is based on facts rather than feelings, and it wants to stop symbolic politics that places new burdens on operations. The counter-proposal's requirements on environment-guided medication substitution, environmental criteria in the generic system and prescription restrictions on environmental grounds are such measures with unclear effect and cost to healthcare. The plan is however concerned about toxins in the aquatic environment, which partly points in another direction.

• most environmental benefit per kronadecisive»Sträva efter miljöeffektivitet och hitta de åtgärder som ger mest miljö per krona« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Strive for environmental efficiency and find the measures that give the most environmental benefit per krona.”
• fact-based environmental policy»Miljöpolitiken måste alltid stämmas av mot nya rön i forskningen och baseras på fakta framför känslor.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Environmental policy must always be adjusted against new findings in research and be based on facts rather than feelings.”
• stop symbolic politics»Stoppa symbolpolitik som går ut över möjligheten att bedriva industri och näring« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Stop symbolic politics that goes against the possibility of conducting industry and business.”
• toxins in the aquatic environment»Situationen vad gäller övergödning och gifter i Östersjön är allvarligt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The situation regarding eutrophication and toxins in the Baltic Sea is serious.”