How we work with the healthcare industry

Whilst always protecting its independence, MSIF has formed a mutually beneficial relationship with the corporate sector over many years. The development of MS treatments and other products has led to growing interest in the work of the MS International Federation by healthcare companies. As a result they have supported MSIF projects that have benefited people with MS around the world.

Although much attention has been focused on the pharmaceutical and biotech industries, there are other health sectors that may wish to support MSIF and its member MS societies. These include manufacturers and suppliers of medical devices and aids to daily living, dietary supplements, health management organisations, nursing/homecare agencies and insurers.

Healthcare companies are important stakeholders in the MS space and where we have shared goals we welcome their support of our work. We also recognise that not all of our goals are aligned so do not accept any interference or influence over any programme design or delivery. In support of this we also always try to secure multi-stakeholder funding for projects to reduce the risk of individual influence.

To acknowledge the unique role of healthcare companies in the MS space we have a detailed policy covering our engagement with them: ‘Policy and Practices in Relationships with the Healthcare Industry (2021)‘. This covers relationships involving financial arrangements, and non-financial relationships.

Acknowledging financial contributions from the healthcare industry

We have developed a set of guidelines to support MS organisations when negotiating and deciding how to acknowledge financial contributions from pharmaceutical companies. The guidelines are based around a traffic light system of green (the ideal situation to aim for), amber (not the ideal situation but still acceptable), red (the situation to avoid).

The guidelines are available in English, Spanish and Arabic. We also have printable versions available on request.

2023 healthcare industry support

The information below shows the exact amount we received from the healthcare industry in 2023 and the programmes they supported.

• Biogen £15,840
• Bristol Myers Squibb £30,000
• Coloplast £5,000
• Merck £110,000
• Novartis £100,000
• Roche £110,000
• Sanofi Genzyme £100,000
• Viatris £35,000