On 13 December, the Commission adopted its Annual Health Work Programme 2018 for the implementation of the Third Health Programme, setting out the priorities and actions to be undertaken in the coming months.
The overall budget for 2018 is over €62 million, with 64% being allocated to grants, 24% to procurement and 12% to other actions including prizes. The activities presented in the Work Programme will focus on a number of dossiers including the promotion of health and prevention of chronic and major diseases, and the implementation of the recently adopted legislation on medical devices.
Two calls for projects will be launched, on promotion of health and prevention of chronic and major diseases and quality and effectiveness of public expenditure. The first call deals with the implementation of existing best practices identified by the Member States and validated through agreed criteria and in the Steering Group for Promotion and Prevention. The second call will aim to help care authorities develop the necessary capacity to implement integrated care using a bottom-up approach.
When it comes to the implementation of the legislation on medical devices, the Commission is expected to carry out consultations to decide on the content and technical developments of the new European medical devices database (EUDAMED).
Background
The EU Health Programme is a funding instrument to support cooperation among EU Member States and develop EU health activities. It feeds into the Europe 2020 strategy which aims to make the EU a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy.
The Third Health Programme covers the period 2014-2020 and serves 4 objectives:
In order to implement this Programme, the Commission is required to adopt annual work programmes to set out actions to be undertaken, including the indicative allocation of financial resources.
More information on the grants can be found in the annexes to the Health Programme here.
