Newsletter April 2005

Involving NGOs in the WHO/EURO Action Plan on Mental Health

Mental Health Europe, an EPHA member, has organised a seminar for NGOs on the World Health Organisation European Region Declaration and Action Plan on mental health. A report is now available.
The event, linked with their General Assembly on 3-4 June 2005, was part of MHE’s EU funded project “Coordination of capacity building, the fight against discrimination, and awareness raising in the mental health field: a European challenge!”.
Following the Helsinki conference on mental (...)

Secretariat News April 2005

Sidsela Nyebak joined the team on 18 April 2005 for a 6 months internship. One of her first tasks will be to analyse the Commission’s draft of the new Health and consumer protection programme.
A Policy Coordination Meeting was held on 13 April and the next meeting will be on 25 May 2005.
Presentations
Lara Garrido-Herrero gave a presentation on 16 April to the participants of the 2005 Network Meeting organised by the European Network for Smoking Prevention (ENSP) from 13 to the 16 April in (...)

European doctors adopt positions on professional mobility and fighting tobacco

The Standing Committee of European Doctors (CPME), an EPHA member, issued three statements in connection with their board and general assembly meeting on 7 and 8 April 2005 in Brussels.
The statements are as follows:
’Health Care Professionals Crossing Borders - Exchange of Information between Competent Authorities’ supporting the idea of a well-functioning network between authorities concerned but stating that information exchanged should be limited to convictions that have (...)

Seminar on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights

IPPF European Network is holding a seminar on ’Europe’s Global Leadership on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR)’ 17 June in Luxembourg.
The seminar will discuss the role of the EU in promoting SRHR in Europe and around the world. Topics include an exploration of the Netherlands and Luxembourg Presidencies’ achievements in SRHR and development, the UK Presidency’s priorities, the outcomes of the ten-year review and appraisal of the Beijing Platform for Action (Beijing + 10), (...)

Conference on Community Mental Health Care

The Psychiatric Association of Slovak Medical Association (a member of Mental Health Europe), together with the Office of the World Health Organisation in Slovakia, are holding a conference on Community Mental Health Care in Bratislava 23-24 June 2005.
The conference will include such topics as the WHO Declaration and Action Plan for Europe, the Slovak National Program for Mental Health, cooperation between the Slovak Republic and the state of California (USA) in the field of community (...)

European tobacco control activists meeting in Cyprus

The European Network for Smoking Prevention (ENSP) is organising their 2005 Network Meeting in Cyprus. The meeting will take place from the 13 untill the 16 April 2005.
The meeting is open to ENSP members and a few observers, but participation is by invitation only.
The programme includes presentations by European Commission officials, World Health Organisation, a representative of the Framework Convention Alliance, several case studies by national coalitions, EU and US academics and (...)

PGEU is recruting a new Secretary/Office Manager

The Pharmaceutical Group of the European Union (PGEU), the European association representing community pharmacists, is looking for a Secretary/Office Manager to start as soon as possible.
If you meet the following criteria, you may be the person we are looking for:
Well organised (able to juggle many tasks) and pro-active administrator with an ability to remain calm even at the busiest of times;
First rate PC skills, the essential being Outlook, Word, (basic) Excel and PowerPoint, (...)

Air pollution costs the EU 161 billion euros annually

Air pollution with particulate matter (PM) claims an average of 8.6 months from the life of every person in the European Union (EU).
The WHO Regional Office for Europe has highlighted the impact of air pollution on health and the financial costs.
Long-term exposure to PM is particularly damaging to human health and reduces life expectancy, and needs to be tackled as a priority. There would also be key financial benefits. For the EU, €58-161 billion could be saved if deaths from PM (...)

**Updated** Current EU research policy

The European Commission’s Directorate General on Research publicly launched the 7th European Research Programme (FP7) at a conference held by the German Presidency in Bonn on January 15-16, 2007. The 7th Research Framework Programme will run from 2007-2013. The first calls for proposals under FP7 were issued on 22 December 2006.
Information days for potential applicants were held across the EU during February 2007 (including one in Brussels on the 7-8 February attended by Silvia Marcos (...)

Commission report on the challenges of biometrics

The Commission has published the report ’Biometrics at the Frontiers: Assessing the Impact on Society’. The study assesses how biometric technologies, like fingerprinting and iris and face recognition, will impact on our daily lives.
The report is published in the context of the new EU requirement for biometric passports, visas and residence permits from 2006. Biometrics are often thought of only in terms of security and border controls, but the report makes the claim that (...)

Commission discloses members of its nutrition policy advisory body

The Euopean Commission announced the list of the 36 members of the Advisory Group on the Food Chain and Animal and Plant Health 21 April 2005 (the call for applications was launched in August 2004).
The aim of this group is to provide input into the preparation, revision and evaluation of legislative proposals in the areas of food and feed safety, animal health and welfare, plant health and human nutrition. The group is supposed to meet at least twice a year and be chaired by the (...)

ECJ rules against discrimination on grounds of nationality for assistance to students

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that granting maintenance assistance on condition that students are settled in the country is incompatible with the Community Law, because it implies discrimination on grounds of nationality.
The ECJ judgement addressed the situation of Dany Bidar, a French national resident in the United Kingdom (UK), who enrolled at University College London and applied for financial assistance and was refused a maintenance loan on the basis that he was not (...)

NGOs call for a more constructive approach to EU funding

A report commissioned by several European NGOs (Concord, European Women’s Lobby, Open Society Institute, Social Platform and Solidar) is critical of the EU rules and procedures for NGO funding.
The report, ’Striking a balance between efficiency, effectiveness and accountability: The impact of EU financial regulation on the relationship between the European Commission and NGOs’, has been issued at a critical point because the Commission is revising the Financial Regulation. This offers (...)

EP low level group on clean cars in Europe

ECJ rules that treatment outside the EU must be reimbursed

The European Court of Justice has ruled that medically necessary treatment outside the EU must be reimbursed for the holders of valid E111 and E 112 forms.
The ECJ judgement addressed the situation of Annette Keller, a German national resident in Spain who arranged for a 1 month E111 form to cover a trip back to her home country. During that period, she was diagnosed with a malignant tumour and required medical treatment. Ms Keller requested and was issued with an E112 (extended several (...)

New tool for scientific input into policy-making

The Commission has launched a new e-Network designed to make scientific advice more available to policy-makers at the EU and national level called SINAPSE (Scientific Information for Policy Support in Europe).
The new web-platform is to promote and encourage exchange of information between policy-makers and the scientific community. It will aim to be:
A library of scientific opinion and advice
A tool for the Commission to consult the scientific community
An early-warning system
A forum (...)

European Week for Safety and Health at Work

’Stop that noise!’ is the theme of this year’s European Week For Safety and Health at Work. This European campaign against excessive noise at work will take place 24-28 October 2005.
High and consistent noise in the work place is an underestimated health risk and may lead to deafness, tinnitus and other health problems. About one in four employees in the EU find themselves exposed to such high noise levels that they have to raise their voices at least half the time at work. The ’Stop (...)

No EU agreement on driving and rest times

The Commission tabled in August 2003 a proposal for a Directive on minimum conditions for the implementation of Directive 2002/15/EC, (which came into force in March 2005) and Council Regulations (EEC) Nos 3820/85 and 3821/85 concerning working time and social legislation relating to road transport activities. This Directive only covers commercial traffic.
The European Parliament’s Transport Committee modified the proposal on 15 March 2005. MEPs disagreed with the Council’s common position (...)

Economic data about health and long-term care for the elderly

The implications of demographic and non-demographic factors for future health and long-term care costs were discussed at a stakeholder conference organised by the Commission on 21-22 February 2005.
"Understanding trends in disability among elderly populations and the implications of demographic and non-demographic factors for future health and long-term care costs" was co-organised by the Commission Working Group on Ageing and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (...)

WHO discusses opportunities and threats of animal to human transplantation

Transplantation of animal organs, living cells and tissues into humans is termed xenotransplantation. Recent experiments have shown that the transplantation of organs from genetically modified pigs into baboons can yield moderate to good results and this raises hopes for the future of organ transplantation from pigs to humans.
However these, along with existing claims of treatments for diabetes or neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, are still at a very embryonic phase. (...)

OECD Ministers call for active social policy

OECD Ministers state that social policies must be pro-active, stressing investment in people’s capabilities and the realisation of their potential, not merely insuring against misfortune.
In March 2005, Ministers responsible for social policies from OECD countries met to discuss the benefits of active social policies and whether social protection has to be provided by the state. They concluded that:
Social and family policies must help give children and young people the best possible start (...)

WHO focuses on health of mothers and children

The WHO World Health Report 2005 "Make Every Mother and Child Count" says that this year almost 11 million children under five years of age will die from causes that are largely preventable. Among them are 4 million babies who will not survive the first month of life. At the same time, more than half a million women will die in pregnancy, childbirth or soon after.
The report says that reducing this toll in line with the Millennium Development Goals depends largely on every mother and every (...)

Bioethics at stake in the new FP7

The European Commission encounters a sound opposition from the European Parliament to introducing European funding for research on human embryo and embryonic stem cells in the next 7th Research Framework Programme (FP7).
On the 20 September 2005, a group of 73 MEPs have signed a letter to the European Commission President, Manuel Barroso, calling the Commission to respect the principle of subsidiarity in the matter: Member States should decide if they want to fund research on the human (...)

Commission adopts new Communication to confront HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis outside the EU

The European Commission adopted on 27 April 2005 a Programme for Action to strengthen Europe’s support to confront HIV/AIDS, Malaria and Tuberculosis outside the EU’s borders. The initiative follows the promise made by Commissioner Louis Michel, in charge of Development and Humanitarian Aid, to do better, do more and quicker in delivering on the Millennium Development Goals (MDG).
The Commission proposes a series of concrete and cheap but effective activities such as the distribution of (...)

UK parliamentarians put the pharma industry under the spotlight

The Health Committee of the UK House of Commons has carried out the first review of the pharmaceuticals industry in more than 100 years.
The MPs concluded that the influence of the industry has expanded to the detriment of the public interest. This is partly due to inadequate oversight by regulators and the need for more rigour by health professionals.
The inquiry looked into the influence of the pharmaceutical industry on health policies, health outcomes and future health priorities and (...)