Europe, in its commitment to promote the well-being of the entire population, has approved the programme EU4Health, with a budget of €5.1 billion, which aims to prepare EU health systems more rigorously for future health threats and pandemics.
The new programme’s main objectives include strengthening health systems by supporting countries to coordinate with each other and share data, as well as improving the availability, accessibility and affordability of medicines and medical devices.
This should enable the EU to face not only future epidemics, but also long-term challenges such as an ageing population and health inequalities.
The programme will also support actions linked to e-health and the creation of the European “health data space”.
Another challenge faced by the development of the European Health Union is accelerating the fight against cancer, not only through this programme but also through Horizon Europe, which has a mission dedicated to this issue. EU4Health will also support the facilitation of access to quality health care, including access to sexual and reproductive health care, and improving mental health.
As in other articles in our blog, we would like to highlight the key role that E-Health must play in meeting all these challenges. Technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, IoT, MHealth or healthcare interoperability should act as transforming elements of our society, with an interdisciplinary approach focused on people.
Source: European Commission