BACKGROUND BRIEF1 Brussels, 12 February 2020

PRESS

Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Brussels, 13 February 2020

The Council session will start at 10.00 and will be chaired by Vili Beroš, minister for Health of Croatia. Ministers will hold a public exchange of views on the COVID-19 outbreak and related measures. The Director of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) Andrea Ammon and Mike Ryan, Executive Director of the World Health Organisation (WHO) Emergencies Programme will also participate in the discussion via video link. Ministers are also expected to adopt Council conclusions on the same topic. A press conference will be held around 13.00 with Minister Beroš and Commissioner Kyriakides.

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Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs meeting page Press conferences and public events by video streaming: Video coverage in broadcast quality (MPEG4) and photo gallery:

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1 This note has been drawn up under the responsibility of the press office.

Press office - General Secretariat of the Council Rue de la Loi 175 - B-1048 BRUSSELS - Tel.: +32 (0)2 281 6319 [email protected] - www.consilium.europa.eu/press 1/2

HEALTH

COVID-19 - exchange of views Health ministers will exchange views to take stock of the implications of the outbreak of human cases of COVID-19. They will also discuss measures and activities undertaken and ways of strengthening their cooperation in the area of public health. Ministers will hold the debate on the basis of a presidency steering note (Discussion paper), containing the following questions:  How can cooperation between Member States be strengthened in cases where an aligned approach to preventive and preparatory measures is necessary to protect public health? How do you see the role of the Commission in terms of providing support to Member States?  Bearing in mind that disease outbreak and other severe events in third countries can affect the European market for pharmaceuticals and medical equipment, what steps should be jointly undertaken in order to ensure a sustainable supply for the internal market? Which would be the most appropriate tools for achieving this goal? The first cases of COVID-19 were reported in China at the end of December 2019. On 28 January 2020, the Croatian Presidency of the Council decided to activate the EU Integrated Political Crisis Response (IPCR) arrangements in information sharing mode. On the same day, France requested the activation of the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) with the aim of providing consular support for the repatriation of EU citizens from Wuhan, China. On 7 February, the presidency convened a high-level videoconference, where member states, along with representatives of the European Commission and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC), had the opportunity to review the state of play and discuss matters of importance from a public health perspective concerning the COVID-19 outbreak. They also exchanged information on measures and activities undertaken and shared their experiences concerning the activation of national systems for handling public health emergencies.

Council conclusions on COVID-19 Ministers are expected to adopt conclusions (Draft Council conclusions on COVID-19) on the outbreak of the virus, welcoming the effective EU response to the threat of a possible pandemic outbreak and calling for increased cooperation both at EU and international level. The conclusions urge member states to take the necessary measures to provide information and guidance to persons who are at increased risk of carrying COVID-19, to enhance cooperation and to continuously share information on the evolution of the virus within their territories. The Commission is called upon to assist the cooperation among member states, to examine ways to facilitate the access of member states to personal protective equipment and to evaluate the consequences of global health threats for the availability of medicines within the EU.

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