EU commissioner Stella Kyriakides. 'The pandemic is not over, and hypothetical forecasting indicates a rise in cases is likely in the coming weeks,' reads the ECDC risk assessment (Photo: European Commission)

EU Commission ready to play bigger role in health sector

EU Political

Health & Society

by Elena Sánchez Nicolás, Brussels,

The public health crisis caused by the coronavirus in member states has pushed the European Commission to play a more active role in the field of health.

The European Commission received on Friday (12 Friday) a political mandate from member states to use €2.7bn from the EU budget to sign contracts with pharmaceutical companies working on possible vaccines.

The EU commissioner for health Stella Kyriakydes said that there was "overwhelming" support from EU countries for

Get EU news that matters

Back our independent journalism by becoming a supporting member

Already a member? Login here

EU Political Health & Society

Author Bio

Elena is EUobserver's Managing Editor. She is from Spain and has studied journalism and new media in Spanish and Belgian universities. Previously she worked on European affairs at VoteWatch Europe and the Spanish news agency EFE.