Overeenkomst over nieuwe generatie behandelmethoden en overzicht resultaten Duits voorzitterschap (en)

Met dank overgenomen van Duits voorzitterschap Europese Unie 1e helft 2007, gepubliceerd op donderdag 31 mei 2007.

Agreement on a Regulation on 'Advanced Therapies'

Schmidt

Today the EU Council of Health Ministers has met in Brussels. Federal Minister of Health, Mrs Ulla Schmidt, appreciated the agreement reached by the EU Health Ministers concerning the regulation on medicinal products for so-called advanced therapies. Thus the quality and availability of new and promising methods of treatment will be improved, in which patients place great hopes. Ulla Schmidt: "The regulation decisively contributes to the competitiveness of the EU in key areas of biotechnology and supports the growth of this upcoming sector of industry. At the same time appropriate attention is paid to ethical issues."

Also the revision of the Medical Devices Directives, which had been expected for a long time, was successfully brought to a close. Ulla Schmidt emphasized: "The public is right to expect that these products meet the highest safety standards and comply with the relevant standards through out the European Union. This is guaranteed due to the amendments of the Medical Devices Directives."

After five months of the German Council Presidency, the Federal Minister of Health, Mrs Ulla Schmidt, said she was satisfied with the results achieved so far: "For the German Council Presidency, 'innovation, prevention and access to healthcare services' have been our priorities in health policy. We achieved decisive progress in all of these areas and they are followed up within the scope of the Triple Presidency with Portugal and Slovenia.

The permanent and serious threat to public health by HIV/AIDS in Europe is the reason why Health Ministers committed themselves in the Council Conclusions adopted today to new initiatives to 'combat HIV/AIDS in the European Union and in the neighbouring countries'. Thus they confirm the results of the ministerial conference held by the German Council Presidency in March, in which Federal Chancellor, Mrs Angela Merkel, had also participated. In every country we have to draw together the responsible stakeholders, representatives from the government, civil society, the pharmaceutical industry and also from international organisations. They all have to make their contribution to a comprehensive solution."

In this context Mrs Ulla Schmidt confirmed that she had intensive conversations with pharmaceutical industry and the European Commission with the aim of enabling patients to have access to expensive antiretroviral drugs in all European states by an appropriate country-specific pricing.

Ulla Schmidt warmly welcomed the conclusions which had been adopted regarding the planned Community framework on health services. During an informal meeting in April, the European Health Ministers expressed their support for a comprehensive legal framework guaranteeing access to health services for all patients throughout the whole European Union. Together with Federal Minister Horst Seehofer, Ulla Schmidt welcomed the 'Council conclusions on health promotion by means of nutrition and physical activity'. They are based on the key results of an expert conference in Badenweiler which had been jointly organised by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection under the German Presidency.

Further information can be retrieved from the Internet at: www.eu2007-bmg.de

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Date: 31.05.2007

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