Opinion
When Bureaucracy Slows Medical Breakthroughs
Article no. 11 · March 17, 2026 · Updated September 20, 2026 ·
The biggest obstacle to new medicines might not be science – but bureaucracy. A new article in Persuasion describes how regulations and permits can delay medical research for years. For those of us with Alzheimer's, it's not just a system failure. It's lost life.
An article in the blog Persuasion describes a problem that an increasing number of researchers and patients are highlighting: medical research is currently being hampered by extensive bureaucracy.
The development of new treatments takes, on average, about ten years and costs over a billion dollars. Some of that time is, of course, necessary to study how drugs affect the human body. But according to the article, a large part of the delay is due to administrative regulations, committees, and documentation requirements that have grown over a long period.
Bureaucracy takes more time than research
The article tells of an Australian entrepreneur who, while trying to develop a personalized mRNA vaccine against cancer for his dog, discovered that it took longer to complete all the applications than to actually develop the treatment itself. Even people trying to access experimental therapies encounter the same obstacles – sometimes hundreds of pages of documentation and lengthy ethical reviews are required.
The system was originally created to protect patients. But the paradoxical result can be the opposite: people with serious illnesses find it difficult to participate in early clinical studies or try new treatments, even when they themselves are willing to take risks.
Clinical studies in Sweden are decreasing
The situation is similar in Sweden. All studies on humans in Sweden must be approved by the Ethical Review Authority. Processing can take months (sometimes longer with supplements). Even small changes require new applications.