During the pandemic the EU established itself as the world's pharmacy as it exported half of the vaccine doses produced in the EU and donated around 500 million euro. doses to its international partners, EU Health and Food Safety Commissioner Stella Kyriakidou said at the Cyprus Pharmacists' Conference. She also underlined the critical role of pharmacists in responding to health crises.
According to the text of her speech, the Commissioner said that pharmacists have a critical and important role to play.
According to the text of her speech, the Commissioner said that pharmacists have a critical and important role to play. "We also count on your future involvement in building, together, this stronger European Health Union," she said, and stressed the importance of the role of pharmacists in helping citizens to understand that taking antibiotics is not the solution for everything.
Ms. Kyriakidou said that the EU had managed to come up with strong solutions at European level[/B] to meet the expectations of its citizens to tackle the coronavirus pandemic, with the main example being the successful EU vaccine strategy, which she described as a "historic success" for the Union, as it managed to negotiate and procure a vaccine portfolio worth 4.2 billion euros. Due to the successful vaccination campaign, more than 73% of the EU population has been fully vaccinated and almost 55% have received a booster dose, she said. Kyriakidou also said that during the pandemic, the EU had established itself as the Pharmacy of the World, exporting half of the doses produced in the EU and donating about 500 million doses to its international partners. According to WHO estimates, the result has been that over 20 million people worldwide have been saved because of vaccines.
"Building on everything we have learned from the pandemic, we quickly saw the need to transform the ad hoc solutions we developed into a permanent EU health architecture that is truly ready for the next health crisis. That is why we are now using all the experience to build a strong European Health Union."
That is why, with the priority of strengthening crisis preparedness for future health threats, HERA, the Authority for Preparedness and Crisis Management, was created, in coordination with the ECDC and EMA.
Referring to the European Cancer Plan, which he said is at the core of the European Health Union, he said it is expected to improve access to diagnosis and pre-symptomatic screening, treatment and care, while reducing inequalities across Europe.
"This is the first time we have such an ambitious, comprehensive and well-funded plan at EU level that allows us to work in a dedicated and coordinated way across the EU to bring about change, for millions of cancer patients, their families and society. In terms of strengthening prevention, early diagnosis, screening, treatment and care."
Furthermore, the European Commissioner said that in a true European Health Union, patients should always have access to the medicines they need, regardless of where they live, and these should be available and affordable for everyone regardless of the size or economy of their country.
"Our pharmaceutical industry should have the conditions it needs to thrive and remain a global leader. That is why we have prepared the EU Pharmaceutical Strategy, a first-class opportunity for everyone's health," he said, explaining that it will include a review of the current EU pharmaceutical rules and will be presented in early 2023.
He also noted that the new EU Pharmaceutical Strategy would address unmet medical needs through the development of innovative medicines, while strengthening the resilience of Europe's drug supply chains.
In conclusion, Kyriakidou said that pharmacists are the first point of contact for citizens when seeking medical advice and treatment and expressed her gratitude that at every stage of the pandemic they have remained in the right direction of science-based positions. She urged them to continue the effort on booster doses, which she said is at a very low level in Cyprus.
Source: CNA
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