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New COPD development prediction: the ALEC Project
Although COPD has long been viewed as a predominantly smoking-related disease, there is increasing awareness that lifestyle and the environment contribute to the development of the disease already fro ...

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Our takeaways from the ERS Satellite on COPD
FA took part in the last Satellite Precision Medicine training, organised by the European Respiratory Society (ERS) to deliver free cutting-edge education using live-streaming technology. This one day ...

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European Commission Manual for patients: Patients’ rights to accessing healthcare
The European Commission Directorate General for Health and Food Safety (DG SANTE) has published a manual for patients regarding their rights to access healthcare in any EU/EEA country different from t ...

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Rare diseases: A new platform to support better diagnosis and treatment
In light of the Rare Disease Day in February, the European Commission has launched a new online knowledge-sharing platform to support better diagnosis and treatment for more than 30 million Europeans  ...

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European Food Safety Authority discusses civil society concerns
The use and presence of pesticides, and their classification as endocrine disruptors where among the top food-related health concerns that civil society representatives discussed with European Safety  ...

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EU digital prescriptions system kicks off in Finland and Estonia
We welcome the initiative giving patients the possibility to use digital prescriptions: prescriptions issued by a doctor at home can be issued when going to a pharmacist in another EU member state.  ...

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Exposure to 25 carcinogens and mutagens will be reduced in the workplace
The third round of amendments on the Directive on Carcinogens and Mutagens at Work came to a close late January. The legislation seeks to impose obligatory occupational exposure limit values on danger ...

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Environmental agency calls for action to protect Europeans from air pollution and noise
Better alignment of social and environment policies and improved local action is necessary to tackle environmental justice issues. These are the results of a report issued by the European Environment  ...

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COP24 reports how much climate change and fossil fuels harm our respiratory health
The World Health Organisation (WHO) COP24 special report on health and climate change shows that climate change undermines people’s access to clean air, safe drinking-water, sufficient food and secure ...

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Quaterly Summary from EFA Working Groups
In December 2018 and January 2019 we organised follow-up calls with EFA Working Groups to discuss hot topics and share national experiences important for allergy and airways diseases patients. Food  ...

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Many obstacles remain to the involvement of patients in the ongoing EU HTA environment
On January 16th, EFA attended the annual meeting of the Health Technology Assessment Network Stakeholder Pool, hosted by the European Commission. During the meeting, participants discussed about how t ...

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EU discussions on the Air Quality Directives shift towards the toll pollution has on our health
EFA participated in the 2nd Stakeholder Workshop organised by the European Commission on January 15 in the context of the ongoing Fitness Check of the Ambient Air Quality Directives. The final ev ...

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Health Topics to be addressed by the Romanian Presidency
In January, Romania took over the EU Council Presidency for the first time since the country joined the EU in 2007. Until June 2018, Romania will ensure the follow up on key policies, such as the HTAo ...

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EFA Plans for 2019
Welcome to a powerful 2019! This year, we will have exciting new projects and events coming up! The EFA Annual General Meeting will take place in March just before the European Elections in May. In  ...

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EFA joins the leadership of PACT
PACT is an awarded innovative and inclusive ‘pact’ for fair access for patients, led by the EPF and the Bulgarian Patient Platform. Susanna joined the partners assembly in Brussels in December. The As ...

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Advocacy to increase EU research investment at the High-Level Conference on EU Research and Innovation
In March 2000, the European Union stated the ambitious goal of becoming the most competitive and dynamic knowledge based economy in the world, by 2010. To achieve it, the EU has gone through several r ...

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New study on the health costs of diesel pollution
On November 27, we represented patients with allergy and airways diseases in roundtable at the launch of the report “Health impacts and the health costs of diesel emissions in the EU”, Paying to Breat ...

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Stakeholders efforts to put health in the EU elections debate
Following the #EU4Health campaign, led by EPHA and EPF, on November 29 th the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries Associations (EFPIA) organised an EU Health Summit to discuss with health ...

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Feedback from the ‘European Patient Innovation Summit’
Which digital technologies have the greatest potential to empower patients? What actions can patient organisations take? These two questions were at the core of the European Patient Innovation Summit  ...

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In memoriam, Günther Hirsch, COPD advocate
Mr. Günther Hirsch passed away in peace in November 2018. As a chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patient he was engaged in the advocacy work of the Austrian Lungen Union, an EFA Member, wer ...

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