The European Respiratory Society (ERS) is pleased to share that the MEP lung health group was formally launched in the ERS advocacy event, ‘Every breath counts – respiratory health in COVID-19 times’, on 13 October, 2020 at 15:00–16:30 CET.
The MEP lung health group is an informal platform for policymakers, health professionals and patients to identify the potential European Union (EU) policy measures aimed at improving lung health.
We were delighted to be joined by the European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, who delivered the opening address to formally launch the MEP group.
ERS President, Prof. Anita Simonds, gave a presentation focused on respiratory health during the COVID-19 outbreak, highlighting what we need to know during the ongoing pandemic and looking ahead to the future.
Marta Almagro, who is an active patient advocate with the European Lung Foundation, provided the important patient perspective on her experiences of living as an at-risk person during the COVID pandemic.
MEP lung health group co-chairs, MEP Manuel Pizarro and MEP Željana Zovko, also presented during the meeting and discussed the ways in which lung health is on the agenda at the European Parliament.
ERS thanks all event participants and we look forward to working with MEPs and policymakers to give Europe’s citizens the chance to breathe clean air and have healthy lungs for life.
See how the meeting unfolded on social media: #EveryBreathCounts – European Parliament lung health group launch event