March 18, 2026 • 8 min read Much has been said about the agreement between Mercosur and the European Union, often from the most obvious perspective: tariff reduction. In healthcare, however, that view’s incomplete. What’s unfolding isn’t simply a trade liberalization process. It’s a structural reconfiguration of how medical devices and pharmaceuticals enter Brazil. And more importantly? Who captures value along the way. The Starting Point: Inefficiency by Design Today, the import structure in healthcare still carries significant inefficiencies. European medical devices reach Brazil burdened by tariffs, high logistics costs, and long distribution chains. Pharmaceuticals, in addition to taxation, face further constraints related to intellectual property and regulatory requirements. The outcome’s predictable: inflated prices and...
