The Covid-19 pandemic clearly shows that many of the Work-Life Balance Directive 2019 provisions – to be implemented by Member States by August this year – are insufficient. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated work-life balance conflicts for workers with care responsibilities, the majority of whom are women. For ETUI Researcher Kalina Arabadjieva, this new EU legal…
A revision of rules to protect workers of carcinogenic and other hazardous substances has been informally agreed by the European Parliament and Council negotiators. During the negotiations, MEPs secured the inclusion of reprotoxic substances in the fourth revision of the Carcinogens and Mutagens at Work Directive (CMD4). These substances have adverse effects on reproduction and…
The European Commission has granted a conditional marketing authorisation (CMA) for the COVID‑19 vaccine Nuvaxovid, developed by Novavax, the fifth COVID-19 vaccine authorised in the EU. This authorisation follows a positive scientific recommendation based on a thorough assessment of the safety, effectiveness and quality of the vaccine by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and is…
The Commission has adopted rules relating to the EU Digital COVID Certificate, establishing a binding acceptance period of 9 months (precisely 270 days) of vaccination certificates for the purposes of intra-EU travel. A clear and uniform acceptance period for vaccination certificates will guarantee that travel measures continue to be coordinated, as called for by the European Council…
The In Vitro diagnostic medical devices regulation that will apply as from 26 May 2022, can now be progressively rolled out, thanks to its adoption by the European Parliament and the Council. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic Member States, health institutions and economic operators redeployed financial and other resources to address the unprecedented…
The Commission has today agreed with BioNtech-Pfizer to accelerate the delivery of its mRNA vaccine to Member States, starting in a few weeks. In Q1 of 2022, BioNtech-Pfizer will deliver an additional 20 million vaccine doses (5 million in January, 5 million in February and 10 million in March). These doses come on top of…
The Commission has put forward proposals to ensure the continued long-term supply of medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and to address outstanding supply concerns in Cyprus, Ireland and Malta. In the context of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, this means that the same medicines will continue to be available in Northern Ireland at…
The ECR MEPs involved in the final report of the Special Committee on Beating Cancer, Shadow Rapporteur Pietro Fiocchi, and First Committee Vice-Chair and ECR Coordinator Joanna Kopcińska, say they are “broadly satisfied” with the direction taken by Parliament in this report in fighting the scourge of cancer. “We welcome the report’s focus on the key themes…
The European Economic and Social Committee launched its vaccination campaign at the December plenary session. Vaccination against COVID-19, along with all the other safety measures, is the best option we have for ending the ongoing health crisis. Currently, the rate of fully vaccinated people varies considerably between countries, ranging from 26% to 82% of the…
The EPP has called for action to remove obstacles for cross-border research. It says it also wants the EU to invest in cancer prevention. Other demands include granting cancer patients the right to be forgotten and simplifying the reimbursement rules for cancer treatments across the EU. The group also advocates banning flavours in e-cigarettes, which…
