Posted: 13-Dec-2006 << BACK
MEPs call for enhanced measures against Hepatitis C
The European Union must take urgent action to combat viral hepatitis in Europe as liver tumors are expected to rise by 200% by 2010-2015. Hepatitis C affects approximately 200 million people worldwide and 12 million people are infected with the virus in Europe.
In light of these numbers five leading health policymakers in the European Parliament put forward a Written Declaration of the European Parliament on Hepatitis C outlining necessary key actions at EU and national level to combat this increasing threat to public health.
The sponsor MEPs Dr. Jolanta Dickute MEP (ALDE-Lithuania), John Bowis MEP (EPP-UK), Stephen Hughes MEP (PES-UK), Frdrique Ries MEP (ALDE-Belgium) and Dr. Thomas Ulmer MEP (EPP-Germany) call on the European Commission and the Council to:
Recognise Hepatitis C as an urgent public health issue;
Adopt a Council Recommendation on Hepatitis C screening ensuring early diagnosis and wider access to treatment and care;
Respond to the Recommendations of the June 2006 European Parliament Report on protecting European healthcare workers from blood borne infections due to needlestick injuries;
Facilitate further research on treatment for Hepatitis C patients co-infected with HIV and/or Hepatitis B under the 7th Research Framework Programme;
The initiative is backed by the European Liver Patients Association (ELPA). ELPA President Nadine Piorkowsky explains: In order to address massive variations in terms of Hepatitis C screening, diagnosis and management within the European Union, an EU-wide approach is vital for patients.
Jolanta Dickute MEP, medical doctor and coordinator of the Declaration adds: Higher awareness and better education are essential to control the spread of the disease, especially in Central and Eastern Europe. In light of the upcoming World Aids Day on 1 December, Dr. Dickute further points out to the high rate of co-infection between Hepatitis C and HIV: We would be misled looking at one disease without considering the other, she says.
Paul de Raeve, Secretary General of the European Federation of Nurses Associations (EFN), which was active regarding the European Parliament Report on needlestick injuries earlier this year, also welcomes the initiative: There is a risk of infection of Hepatitis C for 1 in 30 health workers when they suffer an injury from a contaminated sharp'. Increased EU action can help prevent many of these potentially fatal injuries.
Members of the European Parliament are asked to sign the Written Declaration by 20 February to ensure its success.
Further information on Viral Hepatitis is available at:
http://www.elpa-info.org/
http://www.hep-links.com
http://www.worldhepatitisawarenessday.org/
For more information concerning this initiative please contact:
Jolanta Dickute MEP, tel: 0032 2 28 45632, email: jdickute@europarl.europa.eu
Nadine Piorkowsky, ELPA President, tel: 0049 2225 18 476, email: piorkowsky@hepatitis-c.de
Paul de Raeve, EFN Secretary General, tel: 0032 2 5127419, email: efn@efn.be
PRESS RELEASE 29/11/2006
