Minister of Health, Mr. Adonis Georgiadis, accompanied by the GG. Mr. Aris Aggelis, Specialist in Strategic Planning, as well as Mr. Chariklia Kani, Head of EOPYY Pharmaceutical Directorate, attended the meeting of the Council of Health Ministers of the EU Member States today, Friday, June 21, 2024. It took place in Luxembourg. Among others, the Commissioner of Health (…) participated in the council.
Minister of Health, Mr. Adonis Georgiadis, accompanied by the GG. Mr. Aris Aggelis, Specialist in Strategic Planning, as well as Mr. Chariklia Kani, Head of EOPYY Pharmaceutical Directorate, attended the meeting of the Council of Health Ministers of the EU Member States today, Friday, June 21, 2024. It took place in Luxembourg. Among others, the EU Health Commissioner participated in the Council. Ms. Stella Kyriakidou, as well as Ms. Emer Cooke, Director of the EMA.
The main topics of the Council were the approval of the Conclusions on the Future of Healthcare in the European Union, the adoption of the Council Recommendation on vaccine-preventable cancers and the review of the pharmaceutical legislation of the EU health ministers, as member states negotiate a cluster of provisions on the prevention and management of drug shortages in the EU. reported on the progress made and focused on a proposed system for providing incentives for companies and providing appropriate policy directions during business lunches. In the Union, opinions were exchanged on the issue of equal use of health services by all.
During his remarks, Mr. Georgiadis noted that there is no doubt for Greece that Health is the cornerstone for the development and well-being of societies and that health should be kept as a high Priority on the EU Agenda in the coming years. He even noted that the final text of the Council’s Conclusions is proposed for this purpose, which he supports. He also expressed particular satisfaction at the inclusion of the Climate and Health axis in the Conclusions, as the impacts of climate change are a serious emerging challenge for the Union’s health systems and call for joint preparedness and response.
At the same time, he stressed that Greece is in favor of possible legislation on critical medicines and that, in addition to state aid, all relevant financial mechanisms of the Union should be explored to support this project.
Finally, he said that the establishment of the EU Health Investment Center is necessary, as it would greatly help Member States like our country to receive targeted guidance from the European Commission on the available EU financial instruments that can support their health. reforms to improve the health system for the benefit of citizens.
Referring to the review of the pharmaceutical legislation and in particular the use of the proposed incentives, the Minister of Health stressed that Greece is looking for a balanced and realistic system that will prioritize innovation and patient access to both innovative and generic medicines. The Minister of Health supported maintaining the regulatory data protection period of 8 years, the supplementary market protection of 2 years and the maximum total protection period of 11 years. In addition, it agreed with the Belgian Presidency’s proposal to change the incentive for additional therapeutic indication from data protection to 1 year of market protection, while favoring the creation of a public register where data and protection periods can be searched. apply to each product. Mr. Georgiadis also highlighted the importance of the Unmet Medical Need Incentive, which will provide the necessary guidance for innovation and create objective and measurable benchmarks as well as benchmarking studies to identify products that address unmet need. Finally, he agreed with his Czech counterpart on the need to cooperate on a common EU approach on national strategies and mechanisms for stockpiling medicines to avoid any negative impact on adequate market supply and public health of citizens.
Regarding the issue of equal access to health care for all in the Member States, Mr. Georgiadis addressed the current challenges to ensure equal access to affordable and high-quality health care, which is expected to intensify in the coming years. He emphasized that the European Pillar of Social Rights paves the way for a healthier Europe as a reference framework of 20 Key Principles for a strong social Europe. He added that national policies on health improvement based on the 16th Key Principle for equal access to health within the framework of the European Semester are currently being coordinated and evaluated at the EU level. Finally, he pointed out that health is currently the focal point of all policies for Greece, and in this context the Ministry of Health is assisting the Ministry of Social Cohesion and Family in its Demographic and Long-Term Care plan.
It should be noted that Mr. Georgidis had a bilateral meeting with the Minister of Health of Denmark, Mrs. Sophie Lohde, within the framework of the meeting of the Council of Health Ministers of the EU, during which the two countries exchanged views on other issues. revision of EU legislation on pharmaceuticals.