BAKGRUNN (fra kommisjonsrapporten, engelsk utgave)

In April 2009, a novel strain of human influenza H1N1 was identified that had caused illness in Mexico and the United States first, in March and April 2009.

On 11 June 2009, the World Health Organisation (WHO) declared a pandemic caused by the novel influenza A(H1N1) virus, called ‘pandemic (H1N1) 2009’. This declaration was in line with the WHO’s global influenza preparedness plan where phase 6, the pandemic phase, is defined as the virus causing sustained community-level outbreaks in at least two countries in one WHO region and in at least one other country in a different WHO region. The declaration therefore reflected the spread of the new virus, not the severity of illness caused by it.

In 2005, in the aftermath of the A (H5N1) ‘bird flu’ outbreaks, the Commission adopted a Communication on Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and Response Planning in the European Community, which set out the objectives for each inter-pandemic and pandemic influenza phase and the action to be taken to achieve them at both national and Community levels [1]. This plan has provided a basis for the preparedness and response to the current public health situation.

Today the European Union is better prepared than ever before to tackle cross-border and global health threats in general and Pandemic (H1N1) 2009 in particular. Member States and the Commission have legal and operational provisions in place to authorise pandemic vaccines and anti-viral medication after careful consideration of risks and benefits on the basis of available data in the current pandemic, allowing an adequate response to this pandemic
(H1N1) 2009 situation.

Now there is a need for closer coordination across sectors and Member States, whether at Community, national, regional or local levels, to help to mitigate the societal impact of an influenza pandemic by means of appropriate preparedness and response planning within their individual remits.

The main objective of this Communication is the protection of public health, by ensuring the best possible protection of citizens against the current pandemic. To this aim, the Communication presents in a single document the key issues on the public health coordination on pandemic (H1N1) 2009 at the EU level and internationally. In addition, it aims to highlight the important cross-sectoral dimension of this pandemic. To this end, and in response to requests by the Council of Health Ministers, the Commission is also making available in parallel to the present text, five separate Commission staff working documents on vaccine development, vaccination strategies, joint procurement, communication to the public and support for third countries.

1 COM(2005) 607 of 28 November 2005.