45 Amendments of Michail TREMOPOULOS related to 2010/2089(INI)
Amendment 3 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 5 a (new)
Citation 5 a (new)
- having regard to the 8 June 2010 Council Conclusions on “Equity and Health in All Policies: Solidarity in Health",
Amendment 4 #
Motion for a resolution
Citation 6 a (new)
Citation 6 a (new)
- having regard to Council Conclusions on Common values and principles in European Union Health Systems (2006/C 146/01),
Amendment 8 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital -1 (new)
Recital -1 (new)
Amendment 11 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital A
Recital A
A. whereas, while citizens live, on average, longer and healthier lives than previous generations, the EU is faced with an important challenge, namely the large gaps in physical and mental health which exist and are growing between and within EU Member States,
Amendment 14 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital C
Recital C
C. whereas health inequalities have also an important gender dimension: women in generalthe gender dimension in terms of livfe longer than men but may spend a longer proportion of their lives in ill healthexpectancy is also a major issue to be addressed where health inequalities are concerned,
Amendment 29 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital E
Recital E
E. whereas comparative measurement of health inequalities is a fundamental first step towards effective action,
Amendment 40 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital G
Recital G
G. whereas a social gradient in health status exists, whereby people in lower educational, occupational and income groups tend to die at a younger age and to have a higher prevalence of most types of health problemsthe Commission has observed that there is a social gradient in health status in all the EU Member States (Commission Communication of 20 October 2010 entitled ‘Solidarity in Health: Reducing Health Inequalities in the EU’); and whereas the World Health Organization defines this social gradient as being the link between socio-economic inequalities and inequalities in the areas of health and access to healthcare,
Amendment 43 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H
Recital H
H. whereas health inequalities are due to differences between population groups in a wide range of factors which affect health, including: living conditions; health related behaviours; education, occupation and income; health care, disease prevention and health promotion services; and public policies influencing the quantity, quality and distribution of these factorsnot only the result of a host of economic, environmental and lifestyle-related factors, but also of problems relating to access to healthcare,
Amendment 49 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H a (new)
Recital H a (new)
Ha. whereas despite the socio-economic and environmental progress that has led to an overall improvement in peoples’ health status over long periods, a number of factors such as hygiene, living and working conditions, malnutrition, education, income, alcohol consumption and smoking are still having a direct impact on health inequalities,
Amendment 50 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H b (new)
Recital H b (new)
Hb. whereas the dearth of medical professionals in certain areas of the EU and their ability to move to other areas of the EU is a real problem, and whereas this situation is resulting in major inequalities in terms of access to healthcare and patient safety,
Amendment 51 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H c (new)
Recital H c (new)
Hc. whereas health inequalities are also linked to problems in accessing healthcare, both for economic reasons (not as much for major treatment, which is dealt with correctly by the Member States, but rather for everyday treatment such as dental and eye care) and as a result of poor distribution of medical resources in certain areas of the EU,
Amendment 54 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital H f (new)
Recital H f (new)
Hf. whereas the lack of access to affordable essential medicines is also a major cause of health inequality in the EU; whereas over the last decade the prices of medicinal products have risen sharply; whereas many citizens of a number of EU member states with lower average incomes and relatively weak public health services must pay directly for a significant part of their pharmaceutical expenditures; whereas this results in higher morbidity and mortality rates for a number of illnesses in EU member states where drug costs are not covered; whereas lower priced generic products are not always available and more efficacious recent drugs not always affordable due to the governance of competition within the internal market or intellectual property regulations that cause high prices to be closely linked with medical innovation,
Amendment 55 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital I
Recital I
I. whereas the Commission forecasts that unemployment is likely to reach 10.3% by the end of 2010, and whereas there is widespread concern that the present economic crisis, particularly its effect on unemployment, will adversely affect population health, according to Eurostat, the EU’s statistical office, unemployment across the 27 EU Member States reached 9.6% in September 2010, and whereas the Council of the European Union’s Social Protection Committee, in its opinion of 20 May 2010, expressed concern that the present economic and financial crisis will adversely affect citizens’ access to healthcare and the Member States’ health budgets,
Amendment 59 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J
Recital J
J. whereas the current economic and financial crisis may have a severe impa, in its opinion of 20 May 2010, the Council of the European Union’s Social Protection Committee emphasised that the restrict ion the heals imposed by the care sector in several EU Member States, on both the supply and the demand sidesurrent economic and financial crisis mean that the Member States must step up their efforts to improve the effectiveness of health expenditure,
Amendment 61 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital J a (new)
Recital J a (new)
Ja. Whereas the restrictions due to the current economic and financial crisis, combined with the consequences of the upcoming demographic challenge that the Union will have to face, could seriously undermine the financial and organisational sustainability of Member States' healthcare systems, thus hindering an equal access to care on their territory,
Amendment 65 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K
Recital K
K. whereas the combination of poverty with other vulnerabilities, such as childhood or, old age, disability or minority background, further increases health riskthe risks of health inequalities,
Amendment 69 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K c (new)
Recital K c (new)
Kc. whereas, with ageing populations, the Member States are having to deal with problems relating to dependency and an increasing need for geriatric care and treatment; whereas a change in the approach to organising healthcare is therefore needed; and whereas inequalities relating to access to healthcare for elderly people are on the increase,
Amendment 70 #
Motion for a resolution
Recital K d (new)
Recital K d (new)
Kd. Whereas equitable access to healthcare is not secured, not only in practice but also in law, for undocumented migrants in many EU countries,
Amendment 75 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 1 a (new)
Paragraph 1 a (new)
1a. Stresses the importance of healthcare services to deliver on fundamental rights; points to the need to maintain and improve the universal access to healthcare systems and to affordable healthcare for all;
Amendment 76 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Stresses that attention must focus on the whole social gradient, with particular attention to be given to the needs of people in poverty, disadvantaged migrant andCalls on the Commission and the Member States to press ahead with their efforts to tackle socio-economic inequalities, which will ultimately make it possible to iron out some of the inequalities relating to healthcare; furthermore, calls on them to focus on the needs of vulnerable groups, including disadvantaged migrant groups and people belonging to ethnic minority groupies, people with disabilities, elderly people and children living in poverty;
Amendment 86 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 b (new)
Paragraph 2 b (new)
2b. Calls on the Member States and the Commission to make access to adequate, quality healthcare for the elderly a priority for 2012, the European Year of Active Ageing and Intergenerational Solidarity;
Amendment 87 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 c (new)
Paragraph 2 c (new)
2c. Calls on the Member States to ensure that the most vulnerable groups, including undocumented migrants, are entitled to and are provided equitable access to healthcare;
Amendment 88 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 2 d (new)
Paragraph 2 d (new)
2d. Calls on the Member States to look into the feasibility of publicly funding healthcare for irregular migrants by providing a common definition for the basic elements of healthcare to which all residents of the EU would be entitled, irrespective of their legal situation;
Amendment 95 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Underlines that the economic and financial crisis, in particular on the supply side, may lead to a reduction in the level of funding for public health and health and long-term care services as a result of budget cuts and lower tax revenues, while the demand for health and long-term care services may increase as a result of a combination of factors that contribute to the deterioration of the health status among the general population; calls on Member States to invest in preventive healthcare so as to avoid longer term cost and burdens on both society and the individual;
Amendment 97 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Calls on the Council toand the Member States to implement and evaluate new measures to mitigate the impact of the economic crisis on the health care sector, in particular in the following areas: investing in health infrastructure, public health, health promotion and disease prevention, optimising funding for the health care sector, restructuring and reorganising the health care systemoptimise and rationalise public spending on health care, to restructure failing health care systems in order to provide equitable access to high- quality health care (in particular routine medical care) without discrimination throughout the EU, to support investment in infrastructure, research and training and to promote and step up disease prevention;
Amendment 102 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Stresses on the need for the European Union and its Member States to anticipate through an appropriate long term strategy the social and economic impacts of the ageing of the European population, in order to guarantee the financial and organisational sustainability of healthcare systems, as well as an equal and continued delivery of care for patients;
Amendment 103 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Calls on the Commission and the Member States to consider public spending on healthcare an investment in the well-being of citizens; calls on the Commission and the Member States to apply social conditionality when reducing public deficits so as to protect the most vulnerable; calls on the Commission to assess the social impact of cuts in public spending also as regards healthcare;
Amendment 107 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5
Paragraph 5
5. Calls on the Member States to improve their capacity to monitor closely, at national, regional and local levels, the social impacts of the crisis;
Amendment 109 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 5 a (new)
Paragraph 5 a (new)
5a. Calls on the Member States to promote access to good quality legal advice and information in coordination with civil society organizations to help the citizens, including undocumented migrants, to learn more about their individual rights;
Amendment 110 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Encourages all the Member States to invest in social, educational, environmental and health services infrastructure; and to coordinate actions with regards to the qualification, training and mobility of health professionals, thus ensuring capacity and sustainability of the health workforce at both EU and national level;
Amendment 113 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 6
Paragraph 6
6. Encourages all the Member States to invest in social, educational, environmental and health services infrastructure; calls on the EU to respect the special nature of health and social services which deliver on fundamental rights and to create legal certainty for those services of general interest;
Amendment 126 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7
Paragraph 7
7. Calls on the Member States to promote public policies aiming at ensuring healthy life conditions for all children, including actions to support pregnant women and parents;
Amendment 129 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Calls on the Member States to ensure all pregnant women and children, irrespective of their status, are entitled to and effectively benefit from social protection as defined in their national legislation;
Amendment 130 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 b (new)
Paragraph 7 b (new)
7b. Calls on the Member States to promote "Healthy Schools" programmes in more disadvantaged areas and to reinforce personal, social and health education, with view to promote healthier behaviour;
Amendment 131 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 7 a (new)
Paragraph 7 a (new)
7a. Calls on the Commission and Member States to address preconception care and maternal health in Europe, to ensure healthy start to life for all children and avoid the development of further health inequalities during their life course;
Amendment 137 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8
Paragraph 8
8. Points to the importance of raisimproving the average level ofccess to disease prevention, health promotion, primary and specialised healthcare services, and decreasing the inequalities between different social groups, and underlines that these objectives could be achieved through the optimisation of public spending for healthcare;
Amendment 144 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 8 b (new)
Paragraph 8 b (new)
8b. Calls on the Member States and the EU to promote wider access to affordable essential medicines through the consideration of new models of medical research and innovation such as innovation prize schemes, equitable licensing, patent pools, public-private partnerships and social conditionality in the concession of EU research funding for the development of new medicinal products;
Amendment 152 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 10
Paragraph 10
10. Calls on the Council and the Commission to give greater recognition within the Europe 2020 strategy to the fact that physical and mental health and well- being are key to fighting exclusion and to include comparative indicators stratified by socio-economic status in the monitoring of the Europe 2020 strategy;
Amendment 169 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 12
Paragraph 12
12. Calls on the Commission to ensure that the reduction of health inequalities isand improved access to physical and mental health services are fully addressed in the future initiative on healthy ageing;
Amendment 181 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls on the Commission to mainstream an approach based on the social determinants of health and on ‘equity and health in all policies’ in the development of all internal and external EU policy, especially with a view to achieving the Millennium Development Goals, and in particular maternal health;
Amendment 182 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 15
Paragraph 15
15. Calls on the Commission to mainstream an approach based on the social, economic and environmental determinants of health and on ‘equity and health in all policies’ in the development of all internal and external EU policy, especially with a view to achieving the Millennium Development Goals;
Amendment 184 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 16
Paragraph 16
16. Calls on the Council to promote the tackling of health inequalities as a policy priority in all Member States, taking into account the social determinants of health and lifestyle risk-factors such as alcohol, tobacco and nutrition, by means of actions in policy areas such as theconsumer policy, environment, education and, working conditions and research; as defined by the ‘health in all policies’ principle;
Amendment 195 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 17 b (new)
Paragraph 17 b (new)
17b. Asks the Commission to consider the development of a proposal for a Council Recommendation, or any other appropriate Community initiative, aiming at encouraging and supporting the development by Member States of integrated national strategies, at national or regional level, for the reduction of health inequalities;
Amendment 197 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18
Paragraph 18
18. Calls on the Commission to assess, in its progress reports, the effectiveness of interventions in the reduction of inequalities in health, and the improvement in health arising from the policies relating to the social, economic and environmental determinants of health;
Amendment 200 #
Motion for a resolution
Paragraph 18 c (new)
Paragraph 18 c (new)
18c. Asks the Commission and the Member States to develop policies and programmes to promote research of causes, early diagnosis, prevention and access to quality treatments for chronic diseases in the European Union, regardless of geographic or socio- economic origins;