Brussels, 01/12/2014 (Agence Europe) - Vaccination is an effective tool against the spread of transmissible diseases, states the Council in conclusions adopted on Monday 1 December.
Member states are urged to remain very vigilant as a worrying trend is developing with a drop in vaccination rates in some countries. “The Ebola epidemic is a reminder to us that viruses know no borders. Vaccines are important for health security in the EU, given the extent of movement of persons, animals and goods”, stressed Italian Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin.
“We have to reverse the trend towards scepticism with regard to vaccines. The Ebola epidemic is a clear demonstration to us. We have to beware of importing diseases, such as poliomyelitis”, added Health Commissioner Vytenis Andriukaitis (our translation throughout).
In concrete terms, the Council calls on the member states to continue to improve national vaccination programmes, to ensure transparency with regard to the post-marketing evaluations of vaccines, to actively offer appropriate vaccination to population groups considered to be at risk and to inform the population in order to raise its trust in vaccinations programmes. The Council also encourages research and innovation in developing new vaccines and the implementation of joint action programmes to improve the exchange between member states of best practice on national vaccination implementation programmes. The European Commission is asked to provide EU funding for vaccination initiatives and to encourage cooperation between countries. At the Health Council on 1 December, Denmark formally signed the joint procurement agreement for bulk purchases of vaccines. In June, 23 member states supported this agreement. (IL)