OMBUDSMAN : ACCESS TO DOCUMENTS: EUROPEAN MEDICINES AGENCY COMPLIES.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) followed the European ombudsman's recommendation to release the adverse reaction reports related to the drug Septrin, a medicine for the treatment of bacterial infections.

"I commend the important progress that EMA has recently made in improving the transparency of its work," said the European Ombudsman, P. Nikiforos Diamandouros. "Such improvements ensure that citizens will have greater trust in EMA, thus increasing both its legitimacy and its effectiveness in carrying out its important work in the field of public health."

The European ombudsman investigates complaints about maladministration in the EU institutions and bodies. In November 2007, the ombudsman received a complaint from a Greek law firm, which had been denied access to reports on the adverse reactions related to Septrin. EMA had justified its decision by arguing that it...