In recent years, Europe has been confronted with overlapping threats to public health. The COVID-19 pandemic, climate-related disasters and war at its borders have all revealed vulnerabilities in health systems' capacity and supply chains. For people living with allergy and airways diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), food allergy and atopic eczema, these events pose an even greater risk. Their health depends on their access to medicines, care and everyday products which is often disrupted when systems are under pressure.
Against this backdrop, the European Federation of Allergy and Airways Diseases Patients’ Associations (EFA) has welcomed the European Commission’s plans to strengthen the EU’s health security framework. On 9 May, EFA responded the European Commission DG HERA’s call for evidence on the EU’s Strategy to support medical countermeasures (MCM) against public health threats.
This Strategy will guide how the EU prepares for and responds to future cross-border health emergencies. It will cover MCMs such as medicines (i.e. vaccines, antimicrobials and antibodies); substances of human origin (blood products); medical devices (i.e. diagnostics and respirators); personal protective equipment. The Strategy is part of the Commission’s annual work programme and will play a major role in protecting the safety and lives of patients.
EFA welcomes the proposal for an EU Strategy to support MCM against public health threats. In the submission, we emphasised the need for an approach that centres on patients’ safety, access, and involvement. Drawing on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic, EFA’s recommendations focus on ensuring that patients receive the care they need when they need it most.
Five key areas of improvement include:
Access to crisis-relevant MCMs: Patients often face barriers to accessing life-saving treatments during crises. EFA urges the EU to ensure equitable distribution of medicines and integrate vaccination calendars to improve resource allocation and public trust.
Placing patients at the centre of research and innovation: Patient safety must be central to health threats research efforts. EFA advocates for precision medicine, paediatric-focused solutions, and addressing gender gaps in health research to better serve vulnerable populations. For people living with chronic airways and allergic conditions, timely access to well-adapted therapies is crucial, especially during emergencies.
Strengthening supply chain resilience across the EU: The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the risks of unequal stockpiling. EFA calls for EU-level coordination to ensure fair distribution of medicines and updated procurement practices to secure critical supplies.
Responding to the impact of climate hazards on health: Climate change exacerbates health conditions like allergies and respiratory diseases. EFA stresses the need for MCMs to address climate-related health threats and disruptions to pharmaceutical supply chains.
Involving civil society and patients in emergency preparedness: Ensuring that patients have a say in preparedness planning, emergency response, and evaluation will result in more effective and trusted policies. Patients bring lived expertise that improves both the design and delivery of health interventions. EFA supports structured dialogue through HERA’s Civil Society Forum to ensure patient voices shape health emergency responses.
As a patient organisation working at the European level, EFA remains committed to supporting the development of a strong, responsive, and inclusive health security framework. We will continue to engage with the Commission and DG HERA to ensure that this Strategy delivers for patients with allergy and airways diseases and strengthens Europe’s ability to respond to future health emergencies.
To find out more, read out response to the consultation, here.