In the policy contribution “Does Europe need a Health Union?” published in February 2022, Former DG SANTE Director General Anne Bucher suggests that the EU “could benefit from closer integration in some areas and be more effective in delivering a high level of health protection”, including in the area of non communicable diseases.

The paper recommends that for chronic diseases, the EU “taps the economies of scale of research and knowledge organised at EU level, and puts in place systems for the surveillance of non-communicable diseases and consolidation of scientific knowledge. This could be achieved through an extension to non-communicable diseases of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control mandate”.

This contribution was prepared at the request of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the informal meeting of health ministers in February 2022.

ECDA welcomes this series of recommendations, which align with ECDA’s position on the importance of extending the ECDC mandate to chronic diseases and to improve chronic diseases monitoring and surveillance in Europe, through an integrated EU system.