Brussels, 06/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - The European Union's Health Ministers and Commissioner David Byrne will be in Malaga on 8 February for a seminar organised by the Spanish Presidency around two major topics.
The first is on the therapeutic use of cells and human tissue and comes within a particularly complex topical debate that touches upon both interesting therapeutic perspectives but where research is still ongoing and raises important ethical issues, as well as a patient's right to benefit from treatment and safety from this. Spanish Health Minister Celia Villalobos would like to have the idea of a draft directive progress covering all cells and tissues in the framework of legislation on the internal market, like the directive on blood and its by-products. A meeting of experts, which began on Wednesday and was continuing into Thursday, should allow for the different aspects of the issue to be discussed (the ethical dimension, criteria for quality and security, the use of stem cells in the framework of transplants, the indications for blood cells of the umbilical cord, donor selection, patient information, storage, etc.) and thus prepare ministerial talks. At this meeting of experts the Commission was represented by Fernand Sauer and the ethical aspects were to be raised by Mr. Quintana.
Ministers have also to discuss the free movement of patients in the light of the latest rulings of the Court of Justice. A delicate subject for certain countries fearing a form of "medical tourism" that could upset the balance of their social security system.
Nor has Ms. Villalobos concealed her intention of raising the issue of parallel imports of medicines, authorised by the Commission in the name of competition and the free movement of goods but that continues to raise problems for certain large laboratories located, notably, in Spain and other countries where medicines are cheaper than on other national markets within the Community.