Ombudswoman investigates Commission over scrapped health NGO grants

Members of the EU4Health Civil Society Alliance made a formal complaint to the European Ombudswoman Teresa Anjinho last year over the European Commission’s failure to publish the 2025 EU4Health call for operating grants to support their work. 

The NGO and patient organisations had demanded the immediate publication of the 2025 operating grant call, the restoration of operating grant support with a clear disbursement timeline and engagement with civil society to ensure transparency, participation, and legal safeguards in future cycles.

The group received a response from the Commission but was not satisfied with it. Anjinho has assessed their request and has decided to open an inquiry.

In a letter sent on 16 February 2026, the Ombudswoman writes that the health NGOs relied on operating grants as a core source of funding and, by signing Framework Partnership Agreements (FPAs).

NGOs were left in limbo

While acknowledging that the Commission was not legally obliged to allocate operating grants in its 2025 budget, the Ombudswoman stresses that it nevertheless had a responsibility to communicate any change clearly and in a timely manner.

The sudden removal of operating grant funding has had tangible consequences across the sector, forcing several organisations to scale back operations and lay off staff. Eurocare, an organisation campaigning to reduce alcohol-related harm, closed its Brussels office as a result.

Eurocare’s closure in Brussels illustrates the structural imbalance between civil society organisations and well-resourced industry lobbies in EU policymaking. Unlike corporate actors, which often benefit from stable funding streams and dedicated public affairs teams, many public health NGOs depend on limited public grants to maintain even a minimal presence in Brussels. When operating funding is abruptly withdrawn, these organisations lose staff, expertise and access to policy discussions, weakening their ability to contribute. 

MEPs from the S&D, Green and The Left have raised their concerns about the widening advocacy gap, in which industry voices backed by significantly greater financial and lobbying have a disproportionate influence in shaping decisions that affect public health policy.

Anjinho writes that complainants contacted the Commission repeatedly throughout 2024 and 2025 seeking clarification, but their requests went unanswered. When the Commission adopted the 2025 EU4Health Annual Work Programme on 23 July 2025, operating grants were absent, and no explanation or transitional guidance was provided to affected organisations. 

The Ombudswoman has now asked the Commission to respond to the issues raised in the inquiry with a deadline of 15 May 2026.