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EU4Health 2021-2027 is Adopted: Resilience, Innovation and Accessibility

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On March 26, the European Commission announced the entry into force of the new EU4Health Programme to support the resilience and innovation of health systems across Europe throughout the period 2021-2027. With a budget of EUR 5.1 billion for investments in the health sector, the EU4Health 2021-2027 programme is financially the largest health programme ever launched!

The adoption of the new EU4Health programme comes at a time when health systems and industries across the world have faced unparalleled threats, and it embodies the EU’s long-term response to the COVID-19 pandemic. As stated by the European Commission Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides: “The entry into force of our EU4Health Programme will give us the tools at hand to make long-standing changes in public health. This unprecedented budget of €5.1 billion will enable us to make targeted investments to enhance our crisis preparedness and build stronger, more resilient and more accessible health systems. This is what our citizens rightfully expect from a European Health Union” (European Commission – Press Release, Brussels, 26/03/2021).

Key actions under the new EU4Health programme

EU4Health 2021-2027 will provide investments for ambitious actions that will contribute to the development of resilient, unified, innovative and accessible healthcare across Europe.

  1. Boost EU’s preparedness for major cross-border health threats, by creating
    • reserves of medical supplies for crises
    • a reserve of healthcare staff and experts that can be mobilised to respond to the crises across the EU
    • Increased surveillance of health threats
  2. Strengthen health systems so that they can face epidemics as well as long-term challenges by stimulating
    • disease prevention and health promotion in an ageing population
    • digital transformation of health systems
    • access to health care for vulnerable groups
  3. Make medicines and medical devices available and affordable, advocate the prudent and efficient use of antimicrobials as well as promote medical and pharmaceutical innovation and greener manufacturing

(EU4Health 2021-2027 – A vision for a healthier European Union)

To implement the new health programme, the EU established a dedicated new executive agency, the Health and Digital Executive Agency (HaDEA) operating since April 1.

Future Calls

Calls for projects under the new EU4Health Programme have not been published yet. Updates will be made available by the European Commission in the dedicate webpage. The AER will inform its members and other stakeholders whenever a call for project is launched and will provide support for partner searches. Additionally, the AER is willing to continue its work and contribute with its expertise in the health sector by joining a consortium as partner with particular regard to digital health, management and capacity-building in the healthcare sector.

Additional Funding

Additional funding for health policies will be provided through other programmes making the total funding amount up to 9.4 billion. Funding programmes are:

Don’t hesitate to get in touch with the AER project Unit!

Contact: Birgit Sandu ([email protected])

Photo from Unsplash @nci

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AER to represent SCIROCCO Exchange project consortium in the European Parliament Healthcare Conference

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On 9 October 2019, nine EU umbrella health organisations held a debate: ”EU 2019-2024: Health Champions Wanted” on the health policy challenges for the European Union in the coming years. The goal of the event was to raise awareness on the main public health priorities including universal access to high quality and sustainable healthcare, disease prevention, the fight against cross-border healthcare threats and health inequities, as well as a continued supply of medicines for EU citizens. Indeed, these challenges require urgent EU action and appropriate budgets. More in particular… “When we wish people something good for their anniversary or for the New Year, we always say that health is the most important. That is why politics at all levels should make health a priority. While many areas are in the responsibility of the Member States, there is a lot of responsibility for the European Union too, according to the treaties.” (MEP, EPP, Dr Peter Liese) … “My ambition is to have health in all policies, and for strong health policies we need discuss together what we want and how can we achieve a healthier Europe. This debate is an excellent opportunity to share visions with different stakeholders and define how we can address the main public health challenges” (MEP, S&D, Dr Sara Cerdas).

Eduardo Nadal represented the SCIROCCO Exchange project consortium #SCIROCCOxchange – , coordinated by the Scottish Government, at the #EUHealthchampions conference in the European Parliament. He presented briefly the project mission and goals and linked it to the importance of quality, equity and sustainable healthcare systems. 

One of the key conclusions, importantly for regional healthcare institutions, is MEP Peter Liese’s remark about the principle of subsidiarity as a shared responsibility between the EU and Member States in terms of funding accountability and policy measures for a more inclusive and efficient healthcare eco-systems on regional and national level.

AER, along SCIROCCO Exchange project partners, are looking forward to contributing to the multi-stakeholder dialogue processes with new MEPs on EU healthcare and public health issues. The consortium, led by the Scottish Government, encourages the European Parliament to join its effort to ensure that health policy remains high on the European Union agenda for the next five years. In line with the debate’s conclusions, the healthcare community believes that, when working together, the EU Member States along the regions, can add genuine value to regional efforts to improve the effectiveness of health systems and deliver patient-centered-care to their communities, making the most of integrated-care good practices for more efficient, sustainable and equity healthcare systems on the regional level.

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AER E-health journey

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With its many years working on e-health and social innovation technologies, AER is recognised as leader in the field. Today, let’s go a few years back and look at everything AER has achieved from the creation of its E-health network in 2006 to its longstanding cooperation with ALEC.

E-health political breakthroughs

E-health can be defined as a set of IT tools used to meet the needs of citizens and patients as well as healthcare professionals, service providers, local authorities and national governments in the field of health.

It is of great political interest as it represents an innovative way to deliver health services, in particular in remote rural areas and to people with mobility difficulties. E-health is seen as an alternative in order to release scarce labour and infrastructure resources. Nowadays, 80% of financing in the health sector is assigned to human resources with around 75% coming directly from public funding. According to the European Commission, 17,5 million people are employed as administrative staff in the medical field, representing 9,3% workers in Europe. In that sense, e-health is determinant to optimise health administration and increase productivity in the sector.

Moreover, E-health is an essential tool for the modernisation of health services in Europe. This, in light of ever-decreasing health budgets and the increasing demands on health systems resulting from demographic changes. Innovation in the health system will with no doubt improve the exchange of information and good practice among healthcare actors and raise awareness on health widely! E-health services are particularly compelling to its usage in preventive health care as well as distance mental health treatments. Thanks to all the above, e-health is a major instrument in improving the quality, efficiency and effectiveness of healthcare services for patients.

Regarding economics and businesses, e-health is a sector with a significant growth potential: touching up-and-coming areas such as technologies, engineering and innovation. Besides, ICT research and development can effectively contribute to regional and EU economic growth.

E-health Network, a life story

AER E-health network was created in 2006. Its meaning was first to identify priority political areas in e-health and to develop joint cooperation projects for regions. The exchange of experience and good practice between regions is also a clear focus for the group.

Therefore, the aim of the network is to create a platform where regions can engage in interregional cooperation projects to develop e-health tools and where they can contribute to European policies on e-health. It brings together member regions interested in developing policies in this field, but also external organisations who focus on the development of e-health technologies. The network is fully open to AER member regions that are either already active in e-health or want to develop e-health policies and tools.

Focus areas include: e-diagnosis, research for available e-health resources, record keeping systems, distance planning, active and independent living for the elderly, mental health and e-health as a planning tool  for health and social systems.

The network especially works on:

  • Raising awareness and disseminating knowledge on the potential of e-health
  • Gathering information on existing tools, funding and policies and carry out studies
  • Together with other regions and partners in coordinating our e-health tools and strategies
  • Stimulating the development of products and services for the commercial market
  • Encouraging research and education in the e-health sector

It organises thematic meetings and several conferences a year to make sure regions fully benefit from other’s experience and good practice to learn everything there is to know about e-health and improve regional systems.

First round for the E-health network

From 2006, the network organised several seminars to exchange experience and start discussing potential interregional cooperation projects. Later that year, the ‘E-health: around the clock care for everyone, everywhere‘ conference was launched in Norbotten. It was the occasion to sharpen key fields of action, choosing to especially discuss e-health as a tool for service delivery, sharing patient information, prevention and dissemination of information. The harmonisation of regional systems and infrastructures as well as creating partnerships with other sectors were also a fundamental feature of the conference.

Following the conference, the network made it its priority to improve the delivery of health services, modernise these services in order to make them financially sustainable and improve access to health services, in particular in rural or remote areas.

In 2007, during a seminar held in Brussels region made their first proposals for e-health cooperation project. AER also actively participated in ‘The World of IT Health’ Conference, in Vienna to exchange observations on interoperable health systems as well as the legal and regulatory framework for e-health in Europe.

2008 was under the sign of promoting cross-border cooperation in e-health and facilitating exchange of e-health professionals. With the hit of the financial crisis, the group profoundly discussed european developments and funding opportunities. New focus subjects were brought to the table such as medical data privacy & protection as well as chronic disease management.

Building a strong link with e-health businesses

AER plays an active part in bringing together SMEs active in ehealth, regional authorities and the end users (patients’, youth and seniors’ associations). The aim is to bring all actors in the ehealth chain together to identify the future priorities in ehealth and to create synergies between them for the development and implementation of the necessary tools and policies.

Different approaches were tested to create a discussion forum for eHealth end users, buyers and developers. Finally a slack channel was successfully developed where all members are free to join. AER also help in facilitating the creation of a regional SMEs network on ehealth across Europe while encouraging the creation of strong trans-border partnerships between businesses involved in the health services.

A multi-stakeholder approach in need of clear leadership

In that sense, AER has always promoted a multi-stakeholder approach to develop innovation in the health sector, involving healthcare professionals, patients, end-users, businesses and industry. The network strongly encourages the exchange of knowledge and experience between all actors as well as e-awareness. This perspective was reinforced from 2010, with AER collaboration with EHTEL to stimulate crossborder cooperation in e-health.

From there, the e-health network recognized that e-health was not only a matter of technology and technics but lacks a clear leadership in the field. Since then, it has hardly worked to highlight the valuable role of regions in maintaining their citizens health. AER worked close with ETHEL in order to develop a programme to train regional representatives to the high stakes of e-health. AER’s strategy was to build capacity and leadership by following the “Learning by doing” principle and develop interregional cooperation projects through the INTERREG agenda. That way building relations to voice the regions’ demands. Such a project is still under development, identifying challenges, targeting sustainable investments and working to change mentalities.

 

AER representing member regions interest through the European Commission

AER launched several partnerships with the European Commission. Together, they organised several events, along with the support of the committee of regions.

One of the most significant collaboration involves the AHAIP initiatives in 2011, the “Active and Healthy Ageing Innovation Partnership“. The programme results in a pilot action designed to improve patients’ health and quality of life and the health administration’s efficiency, as well as supporting the elderly by granting them better quality services. The aim is to bring together actors at all levels and sectors to mobilise available resources and expertise. Once again, it encourages variety of stakeholders to work together while stimulating innovation and capacity. AER wants to make Europe a global leader in e-health, that according to her should be sustainable, an integral part of regional planning process and a priority among regional politicians.

Invited by the European Commission, the AER E-health network organised a workshop to showcase regional expertise in the e-health field. This event took place in the framework of the e-health week in Budapest, a major conference that gathered politicians, health administrators, researchers and industries in order to discuss future priorities for e-health. The forum’s participants emphasised the major role played by regions in the deployment of personal e-health solutions by highlighting the progress achieved for chronic pathologies such as diabetes, cardio-vascular and obstructive pulmonary diseases. The aim of this session was to identify the steps that need to be taken to link the various regional initiatives across Europe today and achieve the AER e- [email protected] network’s vision: dropping the ‘e’ from ‘e-health’, plus,  what needs to be done to achieve Europe-wide deployment of e-health.

Longstanding partnership – ALEC

Since 2010, AER developed strong links with the Artic Light E-health Conference. ALEC is a captivating event uniting digital health professionals from across the globe meet in the arctic region of Norrbotten for two days of inspiration, networking and skill development. The event is hosted by the President of AER Committee 2, Ms Agneta Granström who is also the Chair of the AER e-health network.

Each year AER members are invited to participate in a great panel of events on e-health, including study visits. ALEC enables all stakeholders discuss digital’s potential to bridge health gaps, and develop tools to design better health for all. Past conferences have included key aspects of e-health sought to address both the technical and organisational aspects affecting the patient’s experience. Participants discuss sustainable e-health (social, environmental & economical),independent living and prevention. Together they exchange on european perspectives, best practices, cross border services and identify challenges.

Last year the 5th Arctic Light e-Health Conference  was held in Sweden.

Speeding up actions

From 2016, AER became a true leader in E-health good practice event, multiplying opportunities for its regions.

AER members met with Representatives from the industry, academy and institution will meet up in Budapest (HU)  for the international 360° Summit on eHealth. Together they discussed quality healthcare provisioning in Europe, a major issue for the EU healthcare systems. In deed, the population growth and the increasing number of chronic patients is creating a strong budgetary pressure on governments. AER provided concrete actions to face this challenge within its Committees, favouring a dialogue among health, innovation, enterprises and social policies.

Besides, AER actively joined in “E-health: let’s find a common language” event hosted by Brussels Capital at the Committee of the Regions. The event aimed at providing participants with information on funding opportunities in the field of healthcare,  new connections, tested ideas to improve communication between stakeholders, inspiration and mutual understanding. AER wants to show increase collaboration and improve communication among stakeholders, beginning at the regional level.  This event successfully managed to bring together companies and organisations working on e-health via group discussions, enhancing the participation and the exchange of ideas.

Finally AER participated in a session organised by ECHAlliance on a new “Coalition of the Willing” at the 2016 e-health week. This digital health journey across Europe aims at speeding up the deployment of e-health in regions. Agneta Granström presented the issues faced by europeans regions. When it comes to using e-health to build a new, sustainable and patient-centered health system, which supports health innovation, leadership is key. Ms. Granström emphasized the need for change management, change leadership and an increased focus on improving digital literacy among leaders.

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Photo by jesse orrico on Unsplash

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AER to speak at Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform first workshop

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The Assembly of European Regions has been a key partner for Interreg Europe in setting up and implementing its Policy Learning Platform. AER is invited for the first thematic workshop to share good practices on health and well-being.

Interreg Europe

The Interreg Eruope programme intends to reinforce economic and social cohesion in the European Union through the promotion of cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation. It works also towards a balanced an sustainable development of the territory. The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) finances the programme.

Interreg Europe Policy Learning Platform

The Policy Learning Platform is a space where policymakers can find solutions to improve the way they manage and implement their public policies.

It mainly targets four priority topics:

  • Research and Innovation
  • SMEs Competitiveness
  • Low-carbon economy
  • Environnement and ressource efficiency

Domains in which AER has always been very much involved in!

The main objective of the platform is to facilitate EU-wide policy learning and sharing good practices among stakeholders of regional relevance. In particular, it provides regional policy makers with the tools and information for them to improve the performance of regional development policies and programmes. Additionally, it offers relevant advice and support services to strengthen regional/local policies and enhance their impact mostly through interregional cooperation.

The Workshop

The 28 June, in Brussels, AER will take part in a first platform exchange on health and well-being. The intention is to bring various stakeholders together, to discuss the latest developments in the field and debate on what joint action could be beneficial for European regional practitioners. In the end, the workshop will engage into planning and preparing innovative collaborative activities.

Will be present: partners, managing authorities/intermediate bodies, platforms and the European Commission.

All participants are active in well-being, public health and active ageing. They may also work in the field of ecosystems and open social innovation. Health and well-being are currently their strategic priority.

AER on health and well-being

This workshop will be a great opportunity to share recent AER activities.

Through its Committee 2 on Social Policy and Public health, AER has been very engaged in the topic of health and well-being. AER took a special part in the eHealth services in Europe. Just last year we supported United4Health, participated in 2016 eHealth week, we co-organised with Brussels Capital “eHealth: How to find a common language? ” and continued to share good practices and experience to connect regions in e-health services.

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Let’s be the frontrunner for eHealth services in Europe!

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E-health, connect the dots: connect people

ALEC 2017

Project on Life Balance of vulnerable youngsters: looking for a coordinator and partners

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EU Health Award launched!

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The European Union Health Policy Forum (EUHPF), is a communication platform between the European Commission and health stakeholders that brings together umbrella organisations representing European stakeholders in the fields of public health and healthcare, with the aim of helping to ensure the EU’s Health Strategy is open, transparent and responds to public concerns. AER has been a member of the platform, where it has been representing regions for several years.

In this context, the European Commission just launched its new EU Health Award, which this year will recognise and reward the efforts and achievements of European NGOs towards reducing the threat to human health from antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The call for applications focuses in fields such as:

· Prevention of infection

· Appropriate use of antimicrobials

· Surveillance

· Tackling AMR from a specific disease perspective (e.g. Tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS…).

· Other initiatives that can reduce the threat to human health from AMR.

Prizes are as follows:
  • 1st prize:             20 000 €
  • 2nd prize:           15 000 €
  • 3rd prize:            10 000 €
International, European, national and regional non-governmentalbodies legally registered in the EU Member States or another country participating in the 3rd Health Programme are eligible (Iceland, Norway, Serbia).
The EU Health Award Team invites you to submit your application online before the 31 July 2016.
For more information you can go to:
 
• Twitter @EU_Health 
 
• Contact mail: [email protected]
 

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Launch of a trilateral Interreg Cooperation in the Balkans

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The official launch of the trilateral Programme of Crossborder Cooperation between Croatia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina marked by the Interreg Conference, has been launched on March the 10th at the Croatian city of Split.
The Programme foresees funding of 67 milion €, for crossborder projects (with €57 million coming from the European Regional Development Fund and the Instrument for Pre-Accession Assistance/IPA) in an area covering 87,000 square kilometres with a population of 5.5 million. EU Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Creţu said:

“Our cross-border programmes provide concrete measures to improve the quality of life and offer new economic opportunities and jobs to people living in the border regions of the European Union and its neighbours. These programmes are an opportunity for regions to find common solutions to shared challenges.”

The programme will also help reach the objectives of the South East Europe 2020 Strategy, of the EU macro-regional Strategy for the Danube Region and of the EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region.

The “Interreg-IPA CBC Croatia-Bosnia and Herzegovina-Montenegro” programme includes 12 NUTS III regions in Croatia, 10 municipalities in Montenegro, and the Brčko District of BiH alongside 109 municipalities in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The five main priorities of the programme are:

  1. Improving the quality of services in public health and social care in the programme area;
  2. Protecting the environment, improving risk prevention, flood and fire prevention,and promoting energy efficiency;
  3. Contributing to the development of tourism and to the preservation of the region’s cultural and natural heritage;
  4. Enhancing the economic competitiveness of the region;
  5.  Providing technical assistance to increase the efficiency of the management and implementation of the Programme.

Olja Georis of the Croatian Regional Development Agency (also Head of Managing Authority) called on the Croatian, Bosnian and Montenegrin representatives at the conference to submit joint cross-border cooperation projects for EU financing, saying cooperation was necessary to use the funds as well as possible. She recalled that a call was published on 9th of March  for the submission of draft projects that would receive €25 million of the €67 million envisaged by the programme. She said contracting is planned to begin early next year.

Assistant Regional Development and EU Funds Minister (HR) Marija Vuckovic said the ministry’s role was to back the partners in the realisation of this cross-border project, notably in Croatian border areas. The representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Coordination Board (from the Direcorate of European Integration of Council of Ministers of BiH) Mrs. Nada Bojanić emphasized that BiH stakeholders are prepared for the implementation of the Programme and that it will hopefuly lead to the spreading of the crossborder impact and also highlited excellent cooperation with all counterparts especially with Croatian who offered to share their recent experience in negotiations with EU, which is important for Bosnia and Herzegovina since it is on its European integration path.

The conference was attended by more than 200 national, regional, local and other relevant stakeholders from all three countries participating in the Programme.

Download the presentations delivered at the conference:


The 1st Call for Proposal can be also downloaded here:

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Flinkman Final Conference Stakeholders Join Hands to Improve Flood Risk Management

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Thessaloniki (GR), 9 December 2011

River floods, flash floods, urban floods and floods from the sea in coastal areas are afflictions encountered by regions and countries all over the world. Figures are dramatic: some 85,000 people are killed and 230 million affected by natural disasters worldwide every year. The consequences of these disasters are not only economic and financial, but also environmental and social. It is therefore crucial to prevent and manage floods and engage all relevant stakeholders in the process.

The Flinkman project is born from this assessment. Launched in January 2010 and co-financed by the European Commission under the civil protection instrument, Flinkman is a two-year project promoting three guiding principles: cooperation, coordination and communication. It aims to improve flood risk management by developing a framework for cooperation among all players involved in flood management: politicians, agencies, experts and of course, the citizen.

During today’s Flinkman final conference, participants agreed that though this event marks the end of the project, their mission does not stop here. Regions need to strengthen their defence against catastrophic events and to do this they must learn from each other. Flinkman has shown that the most successful plans are those where all stakeholders are engaged early on in the process. By contributing their knowledge and proposals to a common pot, together they develop comprehensive strategies that cover all possible risks and that everyone can implement if the need arises.

The Flinkman project is lead by the Decentralised Administration of Macedonia-Thrace (GR) and involves the Province of Noord-Brabant (NL), the Land Hessen (D), the Balkan Environment Centre (GR), Sigma Consultants (GR) and the Assembly of European Regions (AER). It marks the conclusion of AER’s Emergency Planning Network, which operated during 2007-2009 and focused on how European regions can develop joint strategies and share their resources when facing emergencies.

For more information: [email protected]

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Lets’ change our perception of disabilities! AER continues to support the integration of people with disabilities

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La Rochelle, Poitou-Charentes (F), 20th October 2011

The working group “Equal Europe for People with Disabilities” of the Assembly of European Regions (AER) met this Thursday in La Rochelle (F) to the kind invitation of Segolène Royal, President of Poitou-Charentes, and Michèle Sabban, President of AER, to exchange views on successful strategies for implementing the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. The choice of Poitou-Charentes is no accident: disability is a political priority since 2004 and it is the first French region to have adopted an Agenda 22 on 15 December 2008.

Agenda 22 is a methodology for applying the UN Convention on the Rights of People with Disabilities. It helps raise awareness around disability issues at all levels of governance and creates a framework for improving accessibility for all and across the board to all services, facilities and activities.

“This policy of the Poitou-Charentes region is fully in line with AER’s objectives to raise awareness among the regions about the UN Convention and support them to implement its provisions,” stated Metin Genç, Chairperson of the AER working group “Equal Europe for People with Disabilities”. “Today the three regions of Poitou-Charentes (F), Hessen (D) and Värmland (S) each showcased their action plans for implementing the UN Convention and have proven once again that one size does not fit all and diversity matters,” he added.

“The achievements in the field are solid proof that what improves the quality of life of people with disabilities, also improves the quality of life of the entire population in all areas of daily life and in particular in the areas within the region’s competence: education, training, employment, transport, sport, culture, health…” added Patrick Larible, Regional Councillor of Poitou-Charentes in charge of Disability.

The common denominator in all regional strategies discussed was that the participation of civil society is key. Indeed, it is the role of the regional and local authorities to encourage and support NGOs, private stakeholders and public authorities, in order to guarantee equal opportunities for people with disabilities once and for all.

For more information: [email protected] AER!

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People with Disabilities: AER works to institute regional employment policies

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Valencia, Comunitat Valenciana (E), 17 June 2011

The Assembly of European Regions’ (AER) working group on ‘Equal Opportunities for people with disabilities’ met in Valencia (E) to debate the question of integrating people with disabilities into professional life.

Advances in the rights of people with disabilities

Today, more than 80 million people with disabilities across the European Union – approximately 15% of the total population – face a number of obstacles in their daily lives, including discrimination in the work place. “We are fortunate because our generation has seen the most important breakthroughs for people with disabilities,” said Joaquin Martinez, Regional Vice-Minister for Personal Autonomy and Dependence, referring to both the UN Convention on the rights of People with Disabilities, recently ratified by the EU, and the EU Disabilities Strategy 2010-2020.

“The actions planned in the framework of the new European strategy focus primarily on assuring that people with disabilities can freely access of goods and services. Additionally, the strategy seeks to improve the participation of people with disabilities and their families’ so that they may exercise all of their rights as citizens of the EU, guarantee access to EU subsidies and encourage governments to strive to eliminate obstacles to their full inclusion,” added the MEP member of the Disability Intergroup of the EP, Rosa Estaràs.

The European regions implement the UN Convention

Regions acknowledge the importance of access to employment as a key guarantee of autonomy and fundamental rights for people with disabilities and a fulfilment of the objectives of the UN Convention and the EU Strategy. To ensure that disability is not an obstacle to employment, the Region Poitou-Charentes (F) for example has instituted an active policy of recruitment, awareness-raising, and adaptation of job positions to help people stay employed. Actions under this policy range from training the region’s staff on disability issues to awarding entrepreneurship funds to people with disabilities wishing to start up their own businesses.

“AER is a great way to open up our minds, stimulate exchange and innovation among the regions and help us implement the rights and obligations that the UN Convention has created for people with disabilities.” concluded Christina Wahrolin, County Councillor from Värmland (S).

For more information: [email protected] AER!

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On the road to active and healthy ageing in Europe

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Codroipo, Friuli Venezia Giulia (I), 18th May 2011

The members of Assembly of European Regions’ (AER) Committee on ‘Social policy and Public health’ met today in the region of Friuli Venezia Giulia (I) to discuss the recent initiatives launched by the European Union in the field of active and healthy ageing, as well as the newly adopted directive on cross-border healthcare, both of which raise the fundamental question of managing healthcare in the regions of Europe.

Among the aforementioned European Commission initiatives is the AHAIP, the “Active and Healthy Ageing Innovation Partnership”, a pilot action designed to improve patients’ health and quality of life and the health administration’s efficiency, as well as supporting the elderly by granting them better quality services. The aim is to bring together actors at all levels and sectors to mobilise available resources and expertise.

“We warmly welcome the AHAIP initiative launched by the European Commission” stated Vladimir KOSIC, President of the AER ‘Social Policy and Public Health Committee’. “My region for instance is investing a lot of money in order to find solutions to provide a commodious life to the ageing people. In a changing society, this kind of investment is not a political choice, it is a necessary reaction to a new reality. Regions will help steer the priorities of this new innovation partnership to make sure that it addresses our citizens’ needs” he concluded.

Today’s discussion also touched upon the EU Directive on cross-border healthcare approved last March. This directive aims at facilitating patients’ access to safe and high-quality cross-border healthcare, but also at promoting cooperation in healthcare between member states. “ Now that the directive has been adopted, the question is to know what will be the impact at regional level, and how regions can implement it in their territory” concluded Vladimir KOSIC.

AER commitment to support AHAIP

• By providing the EU with more information about regional best practices
• By raising awareness among our member regions
• By applying AER methodology through: 1. Peer Reviews – one week long study visit of a multinational experts team to assess the host region work in a specific field; 2.Training Academies: trainers from AER member regions come to share their experience in a specific field.
• By encouraging regions to invest more in innovation in their territories
• By contributing to the AHAIP mechanism once it is operational
• By continuing to establish a bridge with other relevant stakeholders in the field

For more information: [email protected]

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Health Inequalities in Europe: now is the time to act! AER calls for all levels of governance to join forces

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Brussels (B), 8 October 2010

Even in these times of economic crisis, health inequalities can be avoided, and regions have both a political and moral obligation to act: this is the message from the Committee on Social Policy and Public Health of the Assembly of European Regions’ (AER).

It is true that the current economic crisis contributes to reinforcing health inequalities. When responding to the crisis, one cannot simply focus on balancing budgets. It is also important to look at a region’s human and natural resources and make sure that this recession does not lead to a social crisis. Denny Vagerö, Professor of medical sociology, from the Centre for health Equity Studies, stated that “Gross Domestic Product is not a good measure of development. We need to take a broader perspective to development and also look at things such as health, the environment, climate change…”

In the words of Erio Ziglio, Head of the Venice Office of the World Health Organisation, “The challenges now are to secure commitment at all levels and coherence between them. The issue of health inequalities needs to be a whole-of-government priority to be addressed through a coherent set of policies and interventions on a scale appropriate to the trends and magnitude of the problem in the regions.” In his opinion, isolated initiatives are not sufficient: it’s like taking a quarter of an aspirin every six months to treat a headache, when in fact what one needs is 2 aspirins every 3 hours.

Regional action on health inequalities must be complemented by action at the European level. Participants stressed the essential role of Europe’s cohesion policy in combating health inequalities to deliver economic, social and territorial cohesion. In order to have a comprehensive view of a region, we need to revise today’s indicators for the allocation of funds.

For more information: [email protected]

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Thematic dossier n°25 on Health in Europe – Autumn 2010

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Health in Europe

Table of contents

  • Editorial: Constantin Ostaficiuc, President of AER’s ‘Social Policy and Public Health’ Committee President of Timis County (RO)
  • Europe’s health check: urgent action needed at regional level to tackle health inequalities
  • Across the lines: cross-border healthcare directive
  • Interview: Christina Wahrolin, Vice-President of ‘Social Policy & Public Health’ Committee and County Councillor of Värmland (S)
  • On the agenda: helping regions make the most of EU structural funds
  • Interview: Agneta Granström, President of AER [email protected] network and County Council Commissioner of Norrbotten (S)
  • Healthy debate: EU strategy must involve regions to fully address the needs of citizens at regional level
  • Last orders please: AER regions tackle the problem of alcohol-related harm

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AER regions tackle alcohol related harm

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Barcelona, Catalunya (E), 12 May 2010

Recognising the problem that alcohol abuse represents for our society, the Assembly of European Regions (AER) has organised a conference in Barcelona, together with the Department of Health of the Government of Catalonia (E), to discuss current regional projects and activities. The main purpose of the event was to emphasise the negative impact of alcohol and to present regions with policies and actions they can implement to prevent harm.

The conference stressed both the economic impact of alcohol-related harm on Europe and its social cost. Alcohol costs about 125 billion EUR per year; this includes expenses on health services, police and judicial systems, lost working hours and damage to property. Alcohol accounts for 1 in 4 deaths among young men and 1 in 10 deaths among young women. 1 in 4 road accidents involve alcohol. 1 in 4 young people binge drink – as opposed to 1 in 5 adults. The question is: what can regions do to prevent all this?

In the words of Constantin Ostaficiuc, President of AER’s Social Policy and Public Health Committee and of Timis County Council (RO): “These figures are frightening! A recent Eurobarometer study showed that over 90% of citizens support policy action to prevent alcohol related harm among young people. This gives us, regions, not only the legitimacy, but also the duty, to act.”

“In a Europe without borders, it is time, then, to act together, to form strategic alliances and partnerships and to promote the inclusion of health in all regional policies. This conference offered us a unique opportunity to share knowledge, best practices and experiences which will help  us to tackle the  complex phenomena of alcohol”, stated Marina Geli, Regional Minister of Health of the Generalitat de Catalonia.

One of the good practice examples presented was the ‘Beveu Menys’ (‘Drink Less’) Programme implemented by the Government of Catalonia. Its main goals have been to integrate health promotion interventions for harmful alcohol consumption into primary health care professionals’ daily clinical work and to put alcohol consumption on the public health agenda. In order to achieve its objectives, Catalonia has developed training and set up contractual incentives, as well as a network of referent professionals from primary health care and specialized centres.

The event concluded with a debate, which highlighted the importance of strategic alliances and of exchanging experiences at European regional level in order to promote profound changes in this field.

For more information: [email protected] AER!

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The AER welcomes the Barroso Commission II and gives proposals for further cooperation

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Strasbourg (F), 10 February 2010.

The Assembly of European Regions (AER) welcomes the new Barroso Commission, approved by the European Parliament. The new college of European Commissioners will shape European policy making for the next 5 years (until October 2014).

“On behalf of AER, I extend a special welcome to Johannes Hahn, the new Commissioner for Regional Policy. Mr Hahn has a strong local and regional background and he has proven in previous responsibilities a sound understanding of regional policy. But of course AER is looking forward to working with all Commissioners and contributing the regional perspective to their individual policy dossiers,” underlined Michèle Sabban, AER President.

AER, the largest independent network of regional authorities in the wider Europe, is committed to strengthening its cooperation with the new Commission. With a view to improving cooperation, AER calls on the new European Commission to:

Strengthen relations with stakeholders: Each Commissioner should hold regular meetings with representatives of regions and interregional organisations. At the same time, the new Commission has to create a true dialogue between the different DGs and develop a mainstreamed strategy to better link policies.

Take into account regional expertise and know-how in creating a sustainable Europe – EU 2020 strategy: As the regions are best placed to tackle the economic crisis and to employ a sustainable and knowledge based economy, the European Commission should, through efficient multilevel governance structures, involve them in the development and implementation of long-term strategies such as the EU 2020 strategy and the future cohesion policy.

Treat innovation as a core priority: It is in the regions where innovative ideas are born and implemented. Bringing those ideas to the European agenda and putting strong emphasis on the issue of innovation is what regions expect from the Commission.

Ensure that social inclusion forms a basis for European integration: the new Commission project for a social market economy should promote holistic policies that take into account the most vulnerable persons in our societies and strives to bring them within the sphere of the European economic and social project.


Renew efforts to adopt the proposed Directive on patient mobility and cross-border healthcare and ensure that health remains a priority under the future cohesion policy and structural funds.

Encourage and promote a quality approach in education and training policies that brings the human being with its multiple dimensions into focus and that does not only concentrate on workforce production and hard sciences. Education and training are drivers for research, innovation and entrepreneurship and thus contribute to both social and territorial cohesion objectives.

For more information: [email protected] AER!

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ALEC2010: First international conference on Regions’ [email protected]

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Luleå – Norrbotten (S), 5 February 2010.

The Assembly of European Regions’ (AER) [email protected] network has organised the first international [email protected] conference that targets directly the regions and their partners. Over 200 regional politicians, officers, university experts and entrepreneurs from across Europe have come to the Arctic Light E-health Conference (ALEC2010) in Norrbotten (S) to share their successes and mistakes and discuss how they can work together to make e-health a reality for all citizens.

“The ultimate goal of the AER [email protected] network is to improve our citizens’ health and quality of life. E-health allows us to harness the potential of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and to provide healthcare where our citizens want it and when they need it. Our citizens are at the centre of our work: we want to give them the knowledge and the tools they need to make informed decisions about their health,” said Agneta Granström, Chairperson of the AER [email protected] network and County Commissioner of Norrbotten County Council (S).

AER member regions are true incubators for innovation in healthcare. The Province of Noord-Brabant (NL) decided to act as a catalyst for the development of smart care in the region, even though this area is not listed among their primary competences. They have created a platform where regional, commercial and healthcare organisations, as well as user/patient associations, can work together to develop innovative responses to the challenges posed by demographic change and an ageing population.

Regions are cooperating to bring down borders in healthcare. The Canton of Basel-Stadt (CH) is working with neighbouring Germany on a pilot project that will allow citizens to receive medical treatment on the other side of the border. The obstacles they encountered ranged from creating acceptance among the health professionals to amending their respective legal systems, which previously did not allow patients to seek treatment abroad. Their experience has shown them that it is important to adopt an incremental approach to change, taking one step at a time, involving health professionals and end users from the very beginning and communicating success.

ALEC2010 aimed to shape the regions’ e-health agenda for the coming years. “The debates of the past two days have emphasised the importance of cooperation. We have the technology and we have the entrepreneurs. Our role as regions is to make sure that they create the e-health tools that our citizens and patients really need. If we all work together around the same table, we can make sure that e-health delivers not only quality healthcare, but also economic gains for our regions. The AER [email protected] network will develop an education programme for regional politicians, to increase knowledge about how e-health can be successfully implemented across regions. There is no future without e-health,” concluded Agneta Granström.

For more information: [email protected]

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