In November, the Civil Society Forum (CSF) of the European Commission’s Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) adopted its first discussion paper on the strategy and future role of HERA. EFA is member of the CSF alongside other public health, patients and healthcare professional European level organisations.
The document is the result of a year of in-depth conversations on the scope, ambition, setup and results that HERA has achieved since its creation in 2021. Throughout the response to three questions that were provided by the European Commission, the paper recommends increased investment into health emergency preparedness and response as well as closer integration of EU level adaptation and response strategies. The signatories call for further development of EU existing capacities to ensure a high level of preparedness and resilience for future crises.
EFA actively participated in the drafting of this document, highlighting gaps and learning from the COVID-19 pandemic, such as the crucial role of civil society organisations in emergency and response; the imperative to plan a response taking into account the existing health burden of chronic and non-communicable disease (NCDs); and the call to consider climate change as a clear health threat. A key ask from the patient perspective has been to ensure more training for healthcare professionals on crisis management and tailored information to the public are included into HERA's future preparedness and response activities.
The paper will inform the upcoming mid-term review of HERA’s mandate in 2024. The paper was presented to HERA Advisory Board on 4 December, to ensure the recommendations are taken into account in HERA’s strategic planning for the next year.
Access the full CSF Discussion Paper on DG HERA website.
Read more about HERA Civil Society Forum.