Late Payments Directive predictably painful for health industries

The adoption of amendments to the so-called Late Payments Directive by the European Parliament’s Internal Market Committee (IMCO) is nothing short of a slap in the face for medical devices and diagnostics manufacturers. The now watered-down version of the proposed Directive, whilst opening a Pandora’s box for these companies, also appears to have smothered any sense of hope to which small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) have hitherto been clinging. The real issue, however, is that Parliament has little opportunity to reverse this decision.