Activities of Véronique DE KEYSER related to 2010/2070(INI)
Plenary speeches (1)
Health care systems in Sub-Saharan Africa and Global Health (short presentation)
Reports (1)
REPORT on health care systems in sub-Saharan Africa and global health PDF (196 KB) DOC (102 KB)
Amendments (24)
Amendment 1 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 25 a (new)
Citation 25 a (new)
- having regard to the conclusions of the October 2008 Oslo conference on the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement as a means of ensuring observance of the rights of internally displaced persons, i.e. persons displaced against their will as the result of conflict, persecution, natural disasters or development projects, irrespective of whether they have crossed a state border,
Amendment 2 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 26 a (new)
Citation 26 a (new)
- having regard to the study of customary law carried out by the International Committee of the Red Cross, identifying health as a customary right which must be respected under international humanitarian law,
Amendment 5 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F a (new)
Recital F a (new)
Fa. whereas there are differences in the terminology used in countries where, respectively, English, French and African languages are spoken and the underlying concepts are not always the same, some countries referring to ‘mutual health organisations’ (‘mutuelles de santé’), others to ‘community-based health insurance’ (‘assurance maladie à base communautaire’) and others to ‘health micro-insurance’ to denote a wide range of mutually supportive risk-sharing schemes designed to cover health service costs in part or in full,
Amendment 6 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F b (new)
Recital F b (new)
Fb. whereas the term ‘mutual’ emphasises the social dynamic and joint initiative of a group of members, while the concept of ‘insurance’ implies (1) payment of contributions in advance, i.e. before risks materialise, (2) risk sharing and (3) a guarantee; and mutual organisations may be defined, in accordance with the 1998 Abidjan Platform, as independent, non-profit organisations based on solidarity and democratic participation, whose aim, mainly through their members’ contributions, is to improve access to quality health care for members and their families in the form of providence and mutual aid,
Amendment 7 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F c (new)
Recital F c (new)
Fc. whereas people living in certain social and humanitarian circumstances do not always appreciate the concept of providence and do not therefore see the point of contributing to insurance against health risks that may not materialise – particularly so where a whole range of NGOs can offer parallel provision of health care and medicines free of charge,
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital F d (new)
Recital F d (new)
Fd. whereas members of the diaspora from sub-Saharan Africa have become aware, in various host countries where mutual health insurance schemes are well developed, that such schemes are useful and beneficial; and whereas many members of the diaspora remain in close contact with their countries of origin,
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Reminds the international community of its commitments to the Millennium Development Goals, and the EU of its undertaking to step up support for health services in sub-Saharan Africa;
Amendment 18 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Points out that every child has the right to have access to vaccination and immunisation programmes; points out, too, that 8.8 million children under the age of five (half of them in sub-Saharan Africa) are still dying every year of preventable or curable illnesses;
Amendment 19 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 b (new)
Paragraph 5 b (new)
5b. Points out that pneumonia and diarrhoea are the main causes of infant mortality in sub-Saharan Africa;
Amendment 31 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 a (new)
Paragraph 10 a (new)
10a. Is deeply concerned about the circulation on the African market of medicines that are past their sell-by date, adulterated or counterfeit, and about the inadequate response of national authorities and the international community;
Amendment 32 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10 b (new)
Paragraph 10 b (new)
10b. Is concerned by the severe shortage of well trained medical staff and the fact that many doctors do not remain in their own countries; suggests that doctors be offered multi-entry visa arrangements to enable them to pursue training in Europe while continuing to be based in Africa;
Amendment 39 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12 a (new)
Paragraph 12 a (new)
12a. Stresses the key role of local authorities in improving prevention and making health care more accessible;
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Stresses that it is unlikely in the short term that these states will be able to fund national health care systems from their tax revenues alone and that a mixed funding system must be found; and points out that co-financing is a useful lever for promoting partner countries’ ownership of projects;
Amendment 42 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 a (new)
Paragraph 16 a (new)
16a. Believes that strategic alliances need to be forged among the main parties involved at local, national and international levels and that institutional dialogue between government, service providers and mutual insurance organisations is vital in defining health policy and shaping the way it is introduced;
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16 b (new)
Paragraph 16 b (new)
16b. Shares the WHO’s view that the extension of healthcare must necessarily be associated with a system of social security based on prepayment and sharing, rather than direct payment by users, and that reforms aimed at establishing universal cover are a prerequisite for fairer health provision;
Amendment 46 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 24 a (new)
Paragraph 24 a (new)
24a. Encourages the efforts being made by certain states which, aware of local circumstances and needs, are supporting initiatives for specific sections of society (e.g. farmers, coffee growers and women’s or neighbourhood groups), ethnic groups or communities, or traditional-type schemes such as tontine funds;
Amendment 48 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 26 a (new)
Paragraph 26 a (new)
26a. Emphasises that there could be a role for members of the diaspora from sub- Saharan Africa in helping to raise awareness in their countries of origin about the benefits of mutual health insurance and the adoption of such schemes;
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 a (new)
Paragraph 29 a (new)
29a. Calls on the Member States and on European laboratories, in accordance with the provisions of the TRIPS Agreement, to negotiate a ‘partnership approach’ respecting patent protection in developed markets and covering voluntary licensing agreements, support for health programmes, technology transfer arrangements and an increase in local production capacity with a view to reducing the price of medicines in low- income countries (through tiered or differential pricing);
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 29 b (new)
Paragraph 29 b (new)
29b. Asks the EU not to include in EPAs provisions on intellectual property rights that place further obstacles in the way of access to essential medicines; points out that, under the 2001 Doha Declaration on the TRIPS Agreement and Public Health, the EU is committed to putting public health before commercial interests, and asks it to use the framework of the EPAs to help the ACP countries implement the flexibility provisions of the Doha Declaration;
Amendment 53 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33
Paragraph 33
33. Calls on the Commission to supplement its aid for vertical funds with recommendations designed to encourage 'diagonal' measures to support basic health care in the countries concerned; calls likewise on the Commission to make recommendations to the vertical funds with a view to their drawing up medium- term exit strategies for partner countries in line with the progress made in achieving the objectives for which they were set up;
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 a (new)
Paragraph 33 a (new)
33a. Calls on the Commission to ensure greater coherence in external relations policies by developing a Communication on social Protection in development cooperation as suggested by the Council in its Conclusions on Promoting Employment through EU Development Cooperation (21 June 2007). This Communication should be tied to a concrete, time-bound action plan with dedicated resources;
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 33 b (new)
Paragraph 33 b (new)
33b. Asks the Commission to support the introduction of health cards in the EU’s partner countries and to work with the countries concerned – at regional level if necessary – to ensure that resources are available to meet the needs in this field;
Amendment 57 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 34 a (new)
Paragraph 34 a (new)
34a. Calls on EU member states’ varying areas of expertise to provide more technical and financial support to developing country governments to implement and extend social protection systems;
Amendment 66 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 36 a (new)
Paragraph 36 a (new)
36a. Calls on all the Member States and the Commission to allocate at least 20% of all development spending to basic health and education, to increase their contributions to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria and their funding for other programmes designed to strengthen health systems, and to prioritise maternal health and efforts to combat infant mortality;