Open Access Government explores the European Commission’s Department of Health and Food Safety’s response to the COVID-19 crisis and charts their next steps towards a vaccine for every European citizen
Since 1 July 2020, Sandra Gallina has been the Deputy Director-General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE) replacing Martin Seychell, working in the department responsible for EU policy on food safety and health and for monitoring the implementation of related laws. In a previous article written by Seychell for Open Access Government, he stated that “at the European Commission, we strive to reach the right balance between innovation, transformation and accessibility.” In assuming this new role, Gallina’s priorities will follow on from this, and will form through supporting Member States in improving the quality and sustainability of health systems, as well as ensuring enforcement of EU laws on food safety and animal and plant health.
The department plans to develop a new chapter for health in Europe, one that is well-equipped to deal with the on-going COVID-19 crisis and its aftermath. EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides stated earlier this year that “sustainability, digital transformation, and reinforced resilience will be our compasses to move forward.” The pandemic has highlighted many areas that need to be strengthened, such as:
- A resilience to crises, with mechanisms for prevention and preparedness.
- Supply chain weaknesses, in particular, for pharmaceuticals and supply chain management – so-called “green lanes” to ensure continued movement of goods.
- The ability to deliver universally accessible and affordable food, medicines, and healthcare long-term, despite any crisis or hurdles that Europe may encounter.
One initiative able to strengthen these areas comes in the form of the new EU Health Programme, EU4Health. EU4Health is a stand-alone programme with a significantly increased budget of 9.4 billion – 23 times larger than it was at the beginning of 2020. It is a paradigm shift in the way Europe looks at health. “COVID-19 has taught us that Europe needs to give a higher priority to health, to enable it to respond better to epidemics and other unforeseen health threats,” added Commissioner Kyriakides.
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