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Health Security and Infectious Diseases
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Although rates of infectious diseases in the EU have been low for decades, the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrated how outbreaks can majorly disrupt societies and economies. Health is a fundamental prerequisite for well-being, affecting work, travel, education, and more.
Past outbreaks like H1N1 influenza (2009), Ebola in West Africa (2014, 2022), Zika (2016), and Mpox (2022) show that international health threats can emerge at any time.
To address cross-border health threats, sustainable approaches to preparedness and response are essential. As part of the European Health Union, the European Commission proposed in November 2020 a new health security framework.
Key measures include:
- Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 strengthening EU preparedness and response.
- Stronger roles for the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA).
- Creation of the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) to ensure access to medical countermeasures.
How to prevent and react to health threats?
- Surveillance and monitoring for detect and identify a threat, epidemic or crisis using early warning channels and with European notification. This requires reliable procedures and other tools that health authorities can use to exchange information quickly and in a targeted manner. Go to the web page
- Reliable risk assessment to decide if and how to respond to a threat. Go to the web page
- Crisis management. Go to the web page
- Analysis and responses to antimicrobial resistance which is a very important growing public health problem. Go to the web page
- Coordination for epidemics such as HIV / AIDS, viral hepatitis and tuberculosis. Go to the web page
- Preparedness for terrorist attacks, hybrid threats and all forms of man-made threats to the public.. Go to the web page
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Dealing with Cross-Border Health Threats
In the EU, cross-border health threats can stem from:
- Infectious diseases (e.g. pandemics, zoonoses).
- Chemical incidents (e.g. industrial spills).
- Environmental causes (e.g. volcanic eruptions, climate change).
Such threats can quickly spread across borders and overwhelm national capacities, requiring a coordinated EU-level approach.
Key elements of response
- Detection and identification – through surveillance and rapid risk assessment.
- Early warning systems – using secure and trusted channels for fast information exchange.
- Response capacity – mobilisation of medical staff, treatments, vaccines, and hospital infrastructure.
Preparedness
- Ensures that capacities, mechanisms and procedures are in place before a crisis emerges.
- Built through lessons learned from past events and regular simulation exercises.
- Critical for protecting citizens during emergencies.
Long-term and emerging threats
- Antimicrobial resistance (AMR): microbes resisting antibiotics and other treatments – a major global health risk requiring sustained action.
- Zoonoses: diseases mutating from animals to humans, tackled through the One Health approach (linking human, animal, plant and environmental health).
- Epidemics needing sustained attention: HIV/AIDS, viral hepatitis, tuberculosis.
- Man-made threats: terror attacks, hybrid threats, and other intentional dangers to public health.
EU Action: Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 on Serious Cross-Border Health Threats
For over 20 years, the EU has had legislation to ensure coordinated responses to health threats of infectious, chemical, biological, environmental or unknown origin.
The Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 (in force since December 2022) strengthens this framework, replacing Decision 1082/2013/EU and incorporating lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Objectives
The Regulation establishes the structures, processes, and mechanisms for EU-level action in prevention, preparedness, surveillance, risk assessment, early warning, and crisis response.
Key features of the current framework
The Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 (in force since December 2022) strengthens this framework, replacing Decision 1082/2013/EU and incorporating lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Objectives
The Regulation establishes the structures, processes, and mechanisms for EU-level action in prevention, preparedness, surveillance, risk assessment, early warning, and crisis response.
Key features of the current framework
- EU public health emergency declaration – triggers:
- stronger coordination,
- deployment of ECDC support,
- monitoring, development, procurement, and deployment of medical countermeasures (treatments, vaccines).
- Preparedness planning – EU-wide preparedness plan with regular monitoring of Member States’ capacities.
- Expanded early warning and response system (EWRS) – interoperable with other EU & international systems; includes contact tracing and a medical evacuation module.
- Strengthened integrated surveillance – at EU level, using AI and advanced technologies.
- New all-hazards risk assessment framework – coordinated with several EU agencies (ECDC, EFSA, ECHA, EEA, EMCDDA, Europol, EMA).
- Joint procurement mechanisms – to secure medical countermeasures collectively.
- Stronger Health Security Committee (HSC) – empowered to adopt common EU-level measures for future threats.
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ECDC and EMA Reinforced
As part of the new EU health security framework, the mandates of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have been expanded to strengthen the EU’s ability to manage cross-border health threats.
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. ECDC – New Mandate
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. EMA – New Mandate
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ROLES & TASKS OF HERA, EMA, ECDC
READ THE COMPARATIVE TABLE
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TIPS: If you want to be constantly informed on the ongoing legislative process in the European Institutions on EU Health Policy and take part to the debate, fill the form at the bottom of this page.
