All posts tagged: Health systems

Health, ​r​​​esilience and ​prosperity: Why ​immunization ​matters

Health, ​r​​​esilience and ​prosperity: Why ​immunization ​matters

Published by Sam Flores

I’ve spent years working on vaccination policy in Europe, and if there’s one thing we still underestimate, it’s this: the value of immuni​​z​​​​ation does not begin and end with preventing acute infections in childhood. That is yesterday’s framing. ​​In today’s Europe, immuni​​​z​​​​​​​ation must be recogni​​​z​​​​​​​ed not as a narrow public health tool, but as a strategic pillar of resilience.​ Sibilia Quilici,  executive director, Vaccines Europe – via Vaccines Europe Europe faces overlapping pressures: ag​​ing populations, chronic diseases, antimicrobial resistance (AMR), climate-sensitive health threats, workforce shortages​​ and constrained public finances. In this context, immuni​​z​​​​ation is not just about preventing illness, it’s about protecting resilience across health systems, economies​​ and societies. ​ ​​The first policy shift is therefore conceptual but essential: immuni​​​z​​​​​​​ation must be recogni​​​z​​​​​​​ed and governed as a strategic investment in resilience.​​​​ ​At the centre of this is​​​ the recognition​​​ that ​​infection is a cascade​​. Infections weaken the immune system and increase vulnerability to further disease. Viral infections are often followed by bacterial ones, leading to antibiotic use and misuse, and contributing to AMR. Some infections …

Europe cannot afford to leave Alzheimer’s patients behind – POLITICO

Europe cannot afford to leave Alzheimer’s patients behind – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

New medicines to treat Alzheimer’s disease have achieved efficacy and safety profiles on par with leading cancer and multiple sclerosis treatments, yet they face more skepticism. 4 Part of the problem is that diseases long considered untreatable suffer from underinvestment in care pathways. When treatments finally arrive, it is families who bear the consequences of health systems that are slow to adapt. This is where leaders can act. When assessing whether these treatments are worth paying for, policymakers must consider the full economic picture, one that captures the long-term value that early intervention delivers, not just short-term direct costs. Science is moving. Europe can lead or fall behind. At a time when European leaders are debating competitiveness, biotech leadership and fiscal sustainability, Alzheimer’s disease is not just a health issue. It is a test of whether Europe can adapt its systems to demographic reality, or allow the gap between scientific progress and patient access to widen further. European policymakers should give people this choice to know and act early. That begins with two priorities: enabling …

France reports meningitis death, says ‘no link’ to UK outbreak – POLITICO

France reports meningitis death, says ‘no link’ to UK outbreak – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

The patient died at Cherbourg hospital. Cherbourg is a key port for ferries to and from the U.K. The health authority said “no link can be established with the meningitis epidemic currently underway in the United Kingdom.” The U.K. is grappling with an ongoing outbreak of meningitis in the southeast county of Kent, linked to a local nightclub. As of Friday, 29 people have fallen ill and two people have died, the U.K. Health Security Agency said. Health Secretary Wes Streeting described the outbreak as “unprecedented.” Health officials have rolled out preventive antibiotics and vaccination to those who attended the nightclub between March 5-7, to close contacts of cases and to local university and school students. France reported one case to the U.K. last weekend in someone who had also visited the university then travelled to France. The French health ministry told POLITICO the patient was “stable,” that close contacts had been alerted and offered antibiotics, and that no further cases had been reported. Source link

Middle East nuclear concerns haunt top health officials – POLITICO

Middle East nuclear concerns haunt top health officials – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

“I think those who read the history of previous incidents, whether intentional or accidental, are very aware of what we’re talking about,” Balkhy said. An estimated 110,000 to 210,000 people died from the U.S. nuclear attacks on the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945. As the war continues, some senior figures have begun to speculate on the use of nuclear warheads. David Sacks, Trump’s AI adviser, said he worried about “Israel escalating the war by contemplating using a nuclear weapon.” Trump rubbished the suggestion, telling reporters: “Israel wouldn’t do that.” The WHO is refreshing its staff on how to respond in the event of a nuclear incident, including providing advice to officials on the public health risks and what measures people should take to protect themselves.  Smoke rises after airstrikes in Tehran, Iran on March 13, 2026. | Fatemeh Bahrami/Anadolu via Getty Images Balkhy also warned there could be significant health impacts, such as respiratory illness, from the attacks on Iranian oil facilities earlier this month that have covered Tehran in smoke. Attacks …

one standard for greener healthcare  – POLITICO

one standard for greener healthcare  – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

In short, fragmentation slows progress, weakens trust and importantly prevents comparability. In practice, the absence of a harmonied standard allows 27 different interpretations of sustainability to coexist is incompatible with a functioning ingle arket. Fortunately, PAS2090:2025 offers what the EU has been missing: a single, science-based methodology that allows regulators, procurers, and industry to finally speak the same language. Developed with stakeholders across the healthcare and life sciences sector, PAS2090:2025 specifies the appropriate methodology for medicines under ISO standards, aligning the playing field for everyone involved. Published by the British Standards Institution in November 2025, it reflects broad technical consensus and strong credibility. PAS 2090:2025 provides the first practical methodology for measuring the environmental performance of pharmaceuticals, establishing a common framework to support comparable environmental reporting, reduce regulatory duplication and provide policymakers with a credible basis to demonstrate progress toward climate neutrality. It also gives industry the predictability needed to invest in sustainable innovation, while ensuring that patients receive consistent assessments of a treatment’s environmental profile, regardless of where it is evaluated. Importantly, this approach …

Low risk of exposure to toxin in baby milk, EU authorities say – POLITICO

Low risk of exposure to toxin in baby milk, EU authorities say – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

Seven countries in Europe — Austria, Belgium, Denmark, France, Luxembourg, Spain and the U.K. — have reported gastrointestinal issues in infants who had consumed formula. However, investigations are still ongoing to establish whether these cases are linked to the formula products. The agencies cautioned that linking common symptoms to the toxin “can be challenging.” The assessment comes after large-scale recalls began in December of last year, when cereulide was found in formula products containing an ingredient supplied by a Chinese based producer. Even more products were pulled off shelves in February following an EFSA assessment on safe levels of cereulide. Source link

Germany rebukes RFK Jr.’s claims Berlin prosecuted doctors over Covid vaccine – POLITICO

Germany rebukes RFK Jr.’s claims Berlin prosecuted doctors over Covid vaccine – POLITICO

Published by Sam Flores

“Anyone who did not wish to offer vaccines for medical, ethical or personal reasons were not criminally liable and did not have to fear penalties,” she said. Warken added that “criminal prosecution took place only in cases of fraud and forgery of documents, such as the issuing of false vaccine certificates” or exemption certificates for masks.  “Doctors [in Germany] decide independently and autonomously on the treatment of patients,” the minister stressed, adding that “patients are also free to decide which treatment they wish to receive.” Kennedy said in a video post on Saturday that he had written to Warken after receiving reports that Germany was restricting “people’s abilities to act on their own convictions” in medical decisions. He claimed that “more than a thousand German physicians and thousands of their patients” faced prosecution for issuing exemptions from mask-wearing or Covid-19 vaccination requirements during the pandemic. Kennedy did not provide specific examples or identify the reports he cited, but he said Germany was “targeting physicians who put their patients first” and was “punishing citizens for making their …