Committee on Public Health

Doctor holding heart shape EU
Working together for better public health

MEPs voted on 18 December 2024 to upgrade Parliament’s subcommittee on Public Health (SANT) into a fully-fledged committee. The Covid-19 pandemic demonstrated the need for a strong and decisive European Health Union. 

The new committee on public health branches off from the previous subcommittee handling the issue and will assume responsibility for health policy previously overseen by the broader environment committee.

SANT will now have 43 members, an increase from the 30 MEPs who formed the previous subcommittee.

It will be officially responsible for pharmaceuticals and medical devices, and will supervise preparedness and response to health crises, mental health and patients' rights, as well as health aspects of bioterrorism and will also supervise inter-institutional relations with other health authorities such as the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the World Health Organisation (WHO). 

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