Inside EU Health: CMA trilogue; cardiovascular strategy; EMA medicines approval; healthcare accessibility

Critical Medicines Act negotiations begin, with urgency stressed by co-legislators

The kick-off trilogue on the Critical Medicines Act (CMA) took place on Tuesday evening, with talks described as constructive and urgent, as co-legislators signaled readiness to move swiftly.

Earlier, Cypriot Health Minister Neophytos Charalambides told MEPs the file was a presidency priority, saying a deal could be reached within six months amid geopolitical pressures.

The first trilogue focused on exchanging mandates, with key issues including scope, strategic projects, stockpiling, joint procurement and financing. Technical talks will now prepare the next trilogue on 16 March.

Critical Medicines Act negotiations begin, with urgency stressed by co-legislators

The kick-off trilogue on the Critical Medicines Act (CMA) took place on Tuesday evening, with discussions described as constructive. Co-legislators reiterated both their readiness to move forward and the urgency of the file, given ongoing concerns around the EU’s security of medicine supply. Earlier that afternoon, addressing the European

Vital SignsCatherine Feore

First exchanges set the tone for EU cardiovascular health debate

The European Parliament’s first debate on Romana Jerković’s draft report on an EU cardiovascular disease strategy showed broad consensus on the need for action. Jerković stressed the urgency of tackling the EU’s leading cause of death through prevention, stronger primary care and addressing inequalities, including harmful marketing to children.

‘Safe Hearts Plan’ sets out an EU response, but critics see gaps

Critics warn that the EU’s cardiovascular disease plan lacks the strong preventive measures needed to match the scale of the problem

Vital SignsCatherine Feore

MEPs across groups echoed support for prevention, while highlighting priorities such as youth-focused measures, innovation, treatment, environmental risks and multimorbidity.

The Parliament’s position aims to toughen the Commission’s proposal, particularly on prevention.

First exchanges set the tone for EU cardiovascular health debate

The European Parliament’s first debate on MEP Romana Jerković’s (S&D, Croatia) draft own-initiative report for an EU cardiovascular disease (CVD) strategy revealed broad support for action, alongside early differences of emphasis rather than open disagreement. Presenting her draft, rapporteur Jerković underlined the urgency of the issue: cardiovascular diseases

Vital SignsCatherine Feore

EMA recommends approval of six medicines, expands indications for nine

The European Medicines Agency’s (European Medicines Agency) human medicines committee (CHMP) has recommended six medicines for approval and expanded the use of nine others at its January meeting.

Among the highlights, the committee backed Fylrevy, a new hormone replacement therapy for postmenopausal women without a uterus. Hungarian maker Gedeon Richter, said it is the first innovative menopause treatment approved in Europe in decades.

The CHMP also approved the first-ever treatment for ultra-rare thymidine kinase 2 deficiency, supported through EMA’s PRIME scheme, marking a major breakthrough for patients.

Not all decisions were positive. EMA declined to grant a new heart-failure indication for Lilly’s GLP-1 drug Mounjaro, though supporting data will be added to product information. By contrast, Novo Nordisk’s semaglutide received conditional approval for treating fatty liver disease (MASH). Finally, regulators launched a data-integrity review of the autoimmune drug Tavneos.

EMA recommends approval of six medicines, expands indications for nine

EMA recommended six medicines for approval at its meeting and extended the therapeutic indications of nine medicines.

Vital SignsCatherine Feore

Eurostat figures show wide gaps in healthcare accessibility across EU

Access to healthcare is a key determinant of health and a central concern of the Sustainable Development Goals. Accessibility datasets from Eurostat, published today (2 February) on a 1 km resolution grid, measure road travel time from populated places to services such as healthcare facilities, highlighting how location and transport affect access to care.

These indicators support monitoring of SDG 3 on good health and well-being, while also informing SDG 10 on reduced inequalities and SDG 11 on sustainable cities and communities by revealing spatial disparities. As the data rely on heterogeneous national registers, some inconsistencies may exist, and Eurostat invites users to provide feedback to help improve data quality and relevance.