Address the necessity of having local and regional authorities better involved in the implementation of the Health Strategy and to contribute at the early stage to the definition of the new health strategy for 2014-2020 in preparation
Impact report 2011
The own-initiative opinion "The role of Local and Regional Authorities in the implementation of the health strategy 2008-2013" was the starting point for closer cooperation between the CoR, the European Commission and the Council in the field of public health.
It should be noted that the rapporteur was invited to present this opinion to the Council Working party on Public Health at Senior level and during meetings, seminars, conferences and subject-based meetings of the technical platform for health cooperation co-organised by the Committee of the Regions and DG SANCO
THE COMMITTEE OF THE REGIONS:
- stresses the need to change the way in which the strategy is implemented in order to take full account of the interests and experience of local and regional authorities and calls for health indicators and objectives to be included in the Europe 2020 strategy;
- notes the many possibilities for improving the way in which the strategy operates, especially as regards European funds, mechanisms and structures for implementing the strategy, regional health indicators and objectives as well as adapting healthcare systems to meet new challenges;
- draws attention to the fact that budget cuts by individual Member States as a result of the crisis should not mean fewer resources for health policy and healthcare, and that more attention should be paid to maintaining their viability by helping them to adapt to future challenges and the potential synergies of public-private partnerships;
- notes that health promotion and preventive measures are an effective means of ensuring public health and limiting ever growing healthcare expenditure and is convinced that good health should be promoted at all stages of life;
- requests that the Committee of the Regions be systematically invited to sit in on the work of the Working Party on Public Health at Senior Level and calls for the Committee of the Regions to be involved in the work of certain subject-based working groups set up at EU level;
- supports initiatives geared towards introducing new technologies, for example an electronic health card, containing a basic package of information about the patient - provided that sensitive personal data remains protected - or other solutions, which make information about individual patients more easily accessible throughout the EU;
- welcomes the initiative by DG SANCO to set up common projects with the Committee of the Regions with a view to involving local and regional authorities in the implementation of the strategy;