An informal meeting of EU health ministers in Dublin is discussing boosting manufacturing capacity for medicines and growing the number of clinical trials in Europe.
Minister for Health Jennifer Carroll MacNeill, who is chairing the meeting, said the aim is to create a better clinical trials environment so that more companies will want to conduct trials in Europe safely, robustly and for the benefit of patients.
She said the aim under the Biotech Act is to allow more patients, especially from smaller countries like Ireland, to participate in larger clinical trials which they are not currently getting access to.
EU Commissioner for Health and Animal Welfare Olivér Várhelyi said an important aspect of the work is the promotion of cardiovascular screening.
He said it was also important for people to take control of their own health and to be aware of the basics of cardiovascular health with screening for blood sugar levels, cholesterol and blood pressure.
The minister said it is hoped there will be an EU Council recommendation on cardiovascular health checks by the end of the Irish EU Presidency.
This would include a focus on early detection and screening.
She said the working parties will progress their work and it will be for council conclusions in December.
Mr Várhelyi said he also hopes to publish an update on the Tobacco Products Directive by the end of the year, to include a focus on nicotine addiction services and vaping.
A full review of tobacco legislation is under way.
The commissioner said one component is to address the addictive nature of vapes and e-cigarettes alongside the penetration of these products being twice the level in young people compared to older people.
A formal meeting of EU Health Ministers is expected in December to progress these and other matters, including simplifying medical devices regulations, to drive patient access, innovation and EU competitiveness.
Delegates from the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the World Health Organization plus delegates from the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) attended the meeting.
Emer Cooke, Executive Director of the EMA, said faster access to medicines is part of the package of pharmaceutical legislation that has already been adopted and it is hoped will be finalised by the end of this year.
Among the areas discussed, and during the rest of the Irish EU Presidency, was health innovation, integrated care, building life sciences, health competencies and improving EU health cooperation and outcomes for patients.
The EU has limited powers on health matters, mainly because it is considered a matter of national sovereignty.
