European health policy: plans of the new European Commission and Dutch priorities
On July 18, re-elected Commission President Ursula von der Leyen presented her policy priorities for the next five years, largely in line with the electoral programs of the European political groups and recommendations from the Council Conclusions of the member states. Her 2024-2029 work program will be crucial for lobbying on European dossiers.
In this blog series, Public Matters discusses what to expect in the coming five years in four major policy areas: energy & industry, healthcare, technology, and agriculture. This week, colleagues Dauphine and Daan discuss the expectations for the healthcare sector.
A Dutch-tinged start and important reforms
In 2019, European Commissioner for Health Stella Kyriakides had a “Dutch-tinged” start due to Arjen Lubach’s call for messages about “cheat cigarettes.” This compelled her to respond and defend the EC’s tobacco policy. Later, Kyriakides faced criticism for the lack of new tobacco regulations. Her term was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic, leading to the establishment of the Directorate-General for Health Emergency Preparedness and Response (HERA), responsible for tasks such as procuring COVID vaccines. She presented the EU pharmaceutical strategy, aimed at ensuring safe and affordable medicines and supporting the European pharmaceutical industry. The European Cancer Plan followed in 2021. In the final year of her mandate, agreements were reached on the EHDS regulation for sharing health data and the SoHo regulation on the safety of human substances.
Health as a priority: the Council’s call
The Council has called on the EC to keep health as a priority in the new mandate, alongside addressing staff shortages and improving the security of medicine supply. The Council advocates for an EU-wide approach to non-communicable diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, chronic respiratory diseases, diabetes, mental health, neurological disorders, and rare diseases. Cardiovascular diseases are high on the agenda. Both the EC and political groups in the Parliament (EPP, S&D, and Greens/EFA) and Hungary, the current Council President, have marked this as a priority. The first of five working group meetings will take place on September 9, and the Council conclusion on cardiovascular diseases is expected to be adopted on December 3. This conclusion aims to reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases in Europe.
Von der Leyen’s political guidelines: health union and economic resilience
Von der Leyen presented her “political guidelines,” in which, alongside the European Cancer Plan and efforts on cardiovascular diseases, the European economy must become more resilient and independent, especially in the health and pharmaceutical sectors. This plan is part of completing the European Health Union, focusing on diversified supply chains, access to advanced treatments, more resilient health systems, and a strategic stockpile of essential medicines. Von der Leyen also proposes continuing European efforts on antimicrobial resistance.
Dutch priorities: prevention and innovation central
The Dutch focus in EU health policy is on prevention and innovative treatments. The Netherlands mainly aims to reduce smoking, problematic alcohol use, and obesity, and to promote sports, exercise, and healthy eating. The majority of the House of Representatives, and Minister of Health Fleur Agema, are supportive of an integrated European action plan for cardiovascular diseases, as proposed by Hungary. The PVV party urged Minister Agema to also focus on access to innovative medicines in this plan. During the EU Health Council on July 24 and 25, Agema stated that new efforts should target the greatest unmet medical needs.
New input for negotiations on the revision of EU pharmaceutical legislation
For the negotiations on the revision of EU pharmaceutical legislation, the Ministry of Health conducted a quick scan. This analysis examines whether the legislative package facilitates rapid access to new medicines and offers an innovation-friendly and future-proof framework for drug development. Although Minister Agema has not yet provided a substantive response to the report, she indicated that she would take the results into account during the discussions on the legislative proposals.
When asked whether the protection period for new medicines should be shorter if they are publicly funded, Agema responded that public funding is important, but most costs and risks are borne by private parties. She finds it unlikely that differentiating protection forms by funding source is feasible due to the complexity and additional administrative burdens.
Prevention and more strategic autonomy
The new European Commission will focus on specific issues such as the prevention of cardiovascular diseases and the intensification of cancer control. Additionally, there is a sense of urgency within the EU to address healthcare issues caused by geopolitical developments. The consequences of medicine shortages are significant and affect many member states. Von der Leyen’s announced Critical Medicines Act aims to offer part of the solution. This law could have a major impact on the industry and organizations in the pharmaceutical supply chain. Furthermore, this Commission will need to address the implementation of adopted regulations, such as the EHDS and SoHo regulations.
In conclusion
For organizations lobbying in the EU, the policy priorities of the European Commission and the specific focus areas are of crucial importance. Understanding (the timing of) these priorities and ambitions from the upcoming work program enables them to effectively target their strategies at key decision moments and relevant stakeholders. The coming period will be marked by interactions with policymakers, participation in consultation rounds, and forming coalitions with other stakeholders. Organizations that proactively follow policy developments, tap into and expand their European networks, and strategically collaborate will have an advantage.
"De nieuwe Europese Commissie gaat zich richten op specifieke issues zoals de preventie van hart- en vaatziekten en de intensivering van kankerbestrijding."
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