On Tuesday, 14 January, the new ‘Advisory Committee on public health emergencies’ held its first in-person meeting (except for videoconferences).
This committee was created in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic so as to support and advise the European Commission and Member States before, during, and after a public health emergency.
The committee is made up of 44 independent experts from different disciplines and sectors. In the event of a serious health crisis, the committee will indicate whether or not the European Commission should recognise a given situation as a public health emergency. Moreover, the committee will recommend possible measures to mitigate the effects of such an emergency.
This group of experts has been established in accordance with Regulation 2022/2371 on serious cross-border threats to health (https://aeur.eu/f/f1b ).
The meeting was opened by Commissioner for Health Olivér Várhelyi, via video message, and was attended by representatives from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), the European Medicines Agency (EMA), and the World Health Organization (WHO). (Original version in French by Lionel Changeur)