Head of Market Access Portugal

About the job

The Head of Market Access – Portugal is the senior country leader responsible for defining and executing the national Market Access strategy across Sanofi's full portfolio. This role ensures optimal reimbursement, pricing, and access conditions from early development stages through launch and lifecycle management.

The role leads a team of 5 Value & Access and Field Access professionals and serves as the primary country interface with the global/regional Market Access & Pricing (MAP) function. While this role is focused on Market Access, it works in close collaboration with the Public Affairs & Policy team to ensure alignment on healthcare policy, stakeholder engagement, and the access-enabling environment.

About Sanofi:

We’re an R&D-driven, AI-powered biopharma company committed to improving people’s lives and delivering compelling growth. Our deep understanding of the immune system – and innovative pipeline – enables us to invent medicines and vaccines that treat and protect millions of people around the world. Together, we chase the miracles of science to improve people’s lives.

Main responsibilities:

As Head of Market Access – Portugal, you will play a pivotal role in defining the country's access strategy, leading cross-functional teams, and ensuring that Sanofi's portfolio achieves optimal market access conditions across all therapeutic areas in Portugal.

National Market Access Strategy

• Define and lead the national Market Access Plan (MAP) for Portugal, aligned with GBU/global strategy and adapted to the Portuguese healthcare environment.
• Develop and execute access strategies for new product launches and lifecycle management across Vaccines, Specialty Care, and General Medicines.
• Anticipate and proactively shape the Portuguese reimbursement and pricing landscape, monitoring INFARMED regulatory updates, legislative changes, and payer trends.
• Serve as the primary country contact for the global/regional MAP function, ensuring two-way alignment between global strategy and local execution.

HTA, Reimbursement & Pricing

• Lead INFARMED HTA submissions including dossier preparation, clinical evidence packages, and health economic argumentation.
• Develop and negotiate pricing strategies with INFARMED, including International Reference Pricing (IRP) management and price maintenance.
• Design and negotiate Managed Entry Agreements (MEAs) and risk-sharing schemes with ACSS and INFARMED.
• Build robust budget impact models and cost-effectiveness analyses tailored to the Portuguese NHS context.
• Manage contract lifecycle for reimbursed products, ensuring compliance with conditions and timely renewals.

Health Economics & Value Evidence

• Partner with global/regional HEOR teams to adapt and generate health economic evidence relevant to Portuguese payers.
• Develop compelling value propositions and payer-facing materials that translate clinical data into access arguments.
• Monitor and respond to comparative effectiveness and real-world evidence requirements from INFARMED.
• Contribute to European HTA (HTAR Regulation) joint clinical assessments and their national implementation implications.

Field & Hospital Access

• Lead and coach the Value & Access and Field Access team (5 professionals) to execute access strategies at regional and hospital level.
• Oversee hospital formulary inclusion strategies in collaboration with Field Access Leads and CFT engagement.
• Ensure alignment between national reimbursement conditions and field execution across ARS regions.
• Monitor access KPIs (time-to-reimbursement, formulary inclusion rates, patient uptake) and drive corrective actions.

Cross-functional Collaboration

• Work in close partnership with the Public Affairs & Policy team to ensure an access-enabling policy environment and aligned stakeholder messaging.
• Collaborate with Medical, Commercial, Regulatory, and Communications teams for integrated launch excellence.
• Contribute to Iberia and European market access strategy, sharing Portuguese insights and best practices.
• Represent Portugal in global/regional MAP forums and cross-country access networks.

About you

• Extensive Market Access experience in the pharmaceutical/biotech industry in Portugal
• Proven track record of successful INFARMED HTA submissions and reimbursement approvals
• Experience with hospital access strategies and CFT engagement across Portuguese ULS regions
• Experience in cross-functional and international matrix environments (Iberia/European scope a plus)
• Existing relationships with INFARMED, SPMS, and ACSS decision-makers
• Experience with vaccine access strategies and national immunization program reimbursement
• Proven track record of negotiating Managed Entry Agreements in Portugal
• Knowledge of EU HTA Regulation (HTAR) and its implications for national processes
• Experience leading Field Access teams and translating national strategy into regional execution
• Participation in APIFARMA Market Access working groups
• Fluent in Portuguese and English (Spanish is a plus given Iberia MCO)
• Degree in Pharmacy, Medicine, Life Sciences, Health Economics, or related field (Master's or MBA preferred)

Why choose us?

• Make your work count by supporting a company that brings life-changing treatments to millions — and is committed to doing right by patients, communities, and the planet.
• Drive progress from within by helping simplify, scale, and modernize how a global biopharma business delivers smarter, faster, and more sustainably.
• Support teams across science, medicine, and operations by building better systems, shaping bold strategies, and enabling innovation at speed.
• Make an impact across borders and functions, collaborating with leaders to turn complex challenges into real-world solutions.