Legislative resolution embodying Parliament' s opinion on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision adopting a programme of Community action on the prevention of AIDS and certain other communicable diseases within the framework for action in the field of public health (COM(94) 0413 - C4-0215/94 - 94/0222(COD)) (Codecision procedure: first reading)
Date: 1995-04-27
Institutions: Committee on the Environment, Climate and Food Safety, European Parliament
Subjects: AIDS, association, dissemination of information, infectious disease, jute, non-governmental organisation, public health













EUR-Lex - 51995AP0077 - EN






Avis juridique important




|



51995AP0077

Legislative resolution embodying Parliament' s opinion on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision adopting a programme of Community action on the prevention of AIDS and certain other communicable diseases within the framework for action in the field of public health (COM(94) 0413 - C4-0215/94 - 94/0222(COD)) (Codecision procedure: first reading)  


Official Journal C 126 , 22/05/1995 P. 0060 





A4-0077/95Proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision adopting a programme of Community action on the prevention of AIDS and certain other communicable diseases within the framework for action in the field of public health (COM(94)0413 - C4-0215/94 - 94/0222(COD))The proposal was approved with the following amendments:(Amendment 1)Citation 4a (new)>Text following EP vote>Having regard to the 'modus vivendi' between the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission concerning the measures to implement acts adopted under the procedure referred to in Article 189b of the EC Treaty, adopted on 20 January 1995;(Amendment 2)Recital 1>Original text>Whereas the prevention of illnesses, in particular the major health scourges, including drug dependence, is a priority for Community action, requiring a global and coordinated approach between Member States;>Text following EP vote>Whereas the prevention of illnesses, in particular the major health scourges, including AIDS, is a priority for Community action, requiring an integrated and coordinated approach between Member States;(Amendment 64)Recital 2>Original text>Whereas AIDS is at present an incurable disease which, given its modes of transmission, can only be effectively combated by preventive measures;>Text following EP vote>Whereas AIDS is at present an incurable disease and major scourge, to combat which action is required at both Community and world level, in the areas of therapeutic research and prevention; whereas the only medicine available merely slows down the disease in infected persons; whereas, to date, the condom is the only preventive measure able to counteract the sexual transmission of the HIV virus, given its modes of transmission;(Amendment 4)Recital 2a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas AIDS is a phenomenon that poses a dilemma not only for those parts of human relationships of most intimate concern to individuals, but also for modes of collective behaviour; whereas its implications extend to the law and the economy, to politics, public health, education, and culture, as well as to medicine, sociology, and research;(Amendment 5)Recital 2b (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas, to date, there is neither a cure for nor a vaccine to treat AIDS; whereas a change must be brought about in attitudes concerning infected persons;(Amendment 6)Recital 4>Original text>Whereas, in their conclusions of 27 May 1993,2, the Council and the Ministers for Health meeting within the Council emphasized the need to continue the activities of the 'Europe against AIDS' programme;2 Doc. 6946/93 SAN 36>Text following EP vote>Whereas the 'Europe against AIDS' programme has been extended until 1995 by Decision ... of the European Parliament and the Council;(Amendment 7)Recital 5>Original text>Whereas, in consequence, the Commission submitted to the Council on 29 September 1993 a Proposal for a Decision concerning the extension to the end of 1994 of the 1991-1993 plan of action adopted in the framework of the 'Europe against AIDS' programme1, to ensure continuation of the Community actions to combat AIDS pending the adoption of a multiannual action programme; whereas the Council adopted on 2 June 1994 a common position concerning that proposal2, with a view to extending the 'Europe against AIDS' programme to the period 1994-1995;1 COM(93)0453 29.9.1993.2 OJ C 213, 3.8.1994, p. 220.>Text following EP vote>Deleted(Amendment 8)Recital 6>Original text>Whereas, in its conclusions of 13 December 1993, the Council agreed that it was necessary for the Community as a whole to acquire a better knowledge of diseases on the basis of their causes and their epidemiological context;>Text following EP vote>Whereas the Council, in its conclusions of 13 December 1993, and Parliament, in its resolutions of 26 May 19893a, 15 May 19913b and 19 November 19933c, took the view that it was essential to acquire a better knowledge of diseases on the basis of their causes and their epidemiological context; whereas, accordingly, the two institutions have called on the Commission to submit proposals for the setting up of an epidemiological network in the European Union;3a OJ C 158, 26.1.1989, p. 477.3b OJ C 158, 17.6.1991, p. 45.3c OJ C 329, 6.12.1993, p. 375.(Amendment 9)Recital 7>Original text>Whereas, in the same conclusions, the Council emphasized that all smooth running of a network for gathering epidemiological data requires that theoretical training in epidemiology and practical preparation in epidemiology in the field be developed for the teams participating in the network;>Text following EP vote>Whereas the Council and the European Parliament emphasized that all smooth running of a network for gathering epidemiological data and ensuring the comparability and compatibility of data requires that theoretical training in epidemiology and practical preparation in epidemiology in the field be developed for the teams participating in the network;(Amendment 10)Recital 7a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas the specific training required of health professionals and the information of all the social workers involved - teachers, families, local authorities and heads of undertakings - presupposes the exchange of experience and the dissemination of information which can only be undertaken by the EU;(Amendment 11)Recital 9>Original text>Whereas the actions undertaken at Community level in the field of AIDS need to be continued and extended to cover certain other communicable diseases, and also to be consolidated within the framework of the action in the field of public health set out by the Commission;>Text following EP vote>Whereas the actions undertaken at Community level in the field of AIDS need to be continued and extended to cover certain other communicable diseases, in particular sexually transmissible diseases (STDs), and also to be consolidated within the framework of the action in the field of public health set out by the Commission, and in Chapter VII of the White Paper on social policy 5a;5a COM(94)0333, 27.7.1994.(Amendment 12)Recital 10>Original text>Whereas the actions must take into account, as the Council requested in its Resolution of 27 May 1993, other actions undertaken by the Community in the field of public health or having an impact on public health;>Text following EP vote>Whereas the actions must take into account, as the Council requested in its Resolution of 27 May 1993, other actions undertaken by the Community in the field of public health, not least the 'Europe against cancer' and the drug abuse prevention programmes, or having an impact on public health, for example health education in schools;(Amendment 13)Recital 12a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas it is necessary to promote studies in the Member States to identify the most effective methods of prevention and to publish the most significant results of this work;(Amendment 14)Recital 13>Original text>Whereas cooperation with the competent international organizations and with non- member countries should be strengthened;>Text following EP vote>Whereas cooperation with non-member countries is essential for combating these scourges and consequently cooperation with the competent international organizations, in particular the WHO, and with health professionals' organizations, non-governmental organizations and patients' associations should be strengthened;(Amendment 15)Recital 14>Original text>Whereas a multiannual programme is required, defining the objectives of Community action, the priority actions for the prevention of AIDS and other communicable diseases, and the appropriate evaluation mechanisms;>Text following EP vote>Whereas a multiannual programme is required, clearly defining the objectives of Community action, conferring maximum priority on the prevention of AIDS and other communicable diseases, in particular STDs, ensuring the coherence and continuity of the actions already undertaken, and receiving appropriate funding and benefiting from transparent evaluation mechanisms;(Amendment 16)Recital 15>Original text>Whereas the objectives of this programme must be to contribute towards improving knowledge concerning the prevalence and patterns of HIV/AIDS and other communicable diseases, improving recognition of risk situations and improving early detection and social and medical support, with a view to preventing the transmission of communicable diseases and thus reducing the associated mortality and morbidity;>Text following EP vote>Whereas the objectives of this programme must be to contribute towards stemming the spread of AIDS and other communicable diseases in the Community by improving knowledge concerning their prevalence and patterns, improving recognition of risk situations and practices and improving early detection and social, health and medical support, with a view to preventing the transmission of AIDS and other communicable diseases and thus reducing the associated mortality and morbidity as well as combating all forms of discrimination against people suffering from AIDS or infected with the HIV virus;(Amendment 17)Recital 15a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas the Commission has, in accordance with Article 3(1) and (3) of the current Financial Regulation, presented the financial statement containing the estimated schedule of annual requirements for the duration of the programme; whereas this financial statement must be updated on the basis of the decisions of the budgetary authority and the degree of utilization of the appropriations authorized and forwarded to the budgetary authority together with the preliminary draft budget;(Amendment 18)Recital 16a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas it is essential to support all actions aimed at combating all forms of discrimination affecting people living with HIV and AIDS, as well as all initiatives aimed at improving their living conditions, including the provision of free health care and financial compensation for any loss of earnings incurred;(Amendment 19)Recital 17>Original text>Whereas possible duplication of effort should be avoided by the promotion of exchanges of experience and by the development of information material for the public, health educators and those who train the health professions;>Text following EP vote>Whereas possible duplication of effort should be avoided by the promotion of exchanges of experience and by the development of information material for the public, health educators, those who train the health professions, patients' associations and non-governmental organizations;(Amendment 20)Recital 17a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas effective coordination needs to be provided among the various Commission departments responsible for health or education;(Amendment 21)Recital 17b (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas the information of children and young people must begin at a very early age in the general context of information on hygiene and sexuality and health education;(Amendment 22)Recital 17c (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas non-governmental organizations and patients' associations assisting the terminally ill - whose role is fundamental if we are to guarantee the proper human dimension - must receive the requisite help for the exchange of experience and the development of coordinated measures;(Amendment 23)Recital 18a (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas this programme should be widely publicized, with particular stress on reaching organizations which lack means of easy access to information on Community programmes;(Amendment 24)Recital 18b (new)>Text following EP vote>Whereas the procedures for granting financial aid should be simple and accessible to small organizations, and there should be permanent guarantees of the total transparency of these procedures and the relevant controls;(Amendment 25)Article 1>Original text>A Community action programme on AIDS and certain other communicable diseases is adopted for a five-year period.>Text following EP vote>A Community action programme on AIDS and certain other communicable diseases is adopted for a five-year period subject to the availability of appropriations resulting from the budgetary procedure.(Amendment 26)Article 2>Original text>The Commission shall ensure implementation of the actions set out in the Annex in accordance with Article 5 and in close cooperation and partnership with the Member States. The institutions and organizations active in the field of the prevention of AIDS and other communicable diseases shall take part in them as well.>Text following EP vote>The Commission shall ensure implementation of the actions set out in the Annex in accordance with Article 5 and in close cooperation and partnership with the competent authorities in the Member States, including regional health, social and education services, and with health professionals' organizations and patients' organizations and non-governmental organizations working on behalf of people with HIV/AIDS.(Amendment 28)Article 4>Original text>The Commission shall ensure that there is consistency and complementarity between the Community actions to be implemented under this programme and those implemented under other relevant Community programmes and initiatives.>Text following EP vote>The Commission shall ensure that there is consistency and complementarity between the Community actions to be implemented under this programme and those implemented under other relevant Community programmes and initiatives, especially the specific research, technological development and demonstration programme in the field of biomedicine and health, and the action taken on the communication on the AIDS policy of the Community and Member States in developing countries.(Amendment 29)Article 5, second paragraph>Original text>The representative of the Commission shall submit to the Committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The Committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft, within a time limit which the chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter, if necessary by taking a vote.>Text following EP vote>In accordance with the provisions of the 'modus vivendi' of 20 January 1995 and the procedures relating thereto, the representative of the Commission shall submit to the Committee a draft of the measures to be taken. The Committee shall deliver its opinion on the draft, within a time limit which the chairman may lay down according to the urgency of the matter, if necessary by taking a vote.(Amendment 30)Article 6(1)>Original text>1. The Community will encourage cooperation with third countries and with international public health organizations, in particular the World Health Organization.>Text following EP vote>1. The Community will strengthen cooperation with third countries and international public health organizations, especially the World Health Organization. It will encourage cooperation among non-governmental organizations whose objective is to combat AIDS in the legal, psychological, social, health and medical fields.(Amendment 31)Article 6(2)>Original text>2. The EFTA countries, in the framework of the EEA Agreement and the countries from Central and Eastern Europe with whom the Community has concluded association agreements may be associated with the activities described in the Annex, according to the provisions of those agreements.>Text following EP vote>2. The EFTA countries, in the framework of the EEA Agreement and within the limits of their financial resources, and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe with whom the Community has concluded association/cooperation agreements, may be associated with the activities described in the Annex, according to the provisions of those agreements.(Amendment 32)Article 7(1)>Original text>1. The Commission will regularly publish information on the actions undertaken and opportunities for Community support in the various fields of action.>Text following EP vote>1. At the end of each financial year over a five-year period, the Commission shall present a progress report to the European Parliament and the Council containing information on the actions undertaken and opportunities for Community support in the various fields of action and ensure that these are widely publicized, especially among the non-governmental organizations which are potential participants in the programme.The report shall draw attention to the synergies developed by the Member States and the results obtained.(Amendment 33)Article 7(1a)(new)>Text following EP vote>1a. The Commission will ensure simplicity and transparency in the procedures for allocating Community support and the relevant controls.(Amendment 34)Article 7(2)>Original text>2. The Commission will submit to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee of the Regions a mid-term report on the actions undertaken, as well as an overall report at the end of the programme.>Text following EP vote>2. The Commission will submit to the European Parliament, the Council, the Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee of the Regions a mid-term report on the actions undertaken, as well as an overall report at the end of the programme. These reports shall take account of the comments of the organizations participating in the programme.(Amendment 35)Annex (I)(A)(1)>Original text>1. Exploration with Member States of ways to increase and improve AIDS and HIV data at the Community level, and provide support to strengthen the work of the national epidemiological surveillance systems and the European Centre for the Epidemiological Monitoring of AIDS.>Text following EP vote>1. Carry out, with Member States, intergovernmental organizations (WHO, UNESCO) and the appropriate NGOs, in coordination with the European Centre for the Epidemiological Monitoring of AIDS, studies aimed at increasing the quality, comparability and availability of data on AIDS and sexually transmissible diseases.(Amendment 36)Annex(I)(A)(1a)(new)>Text following EP vote>1a. Increase support for the European Centre for the Epidemiological Monitoring of AIDS.(Amendment 37)Annex(I)(A)(1b)(new)>Text following EP vote>1b. Enhance coordination between national epidemiological monitoring centres, and create a Community network of epidemiologists with a view to identifying common tools and methods and increasing the capacity of responding in a coordinated fashion to the development of communicable diseases.(Amendment 38)Annex(I)(A)(2)>Original text>2. Gathering, analysis and dissemination of information concerning preventive measures and the knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of the general public and target groups; promotion of the development and use of measures for assessing effectiveness and new surveys where existing information is inadequate, including Eurobarometer surveys.>Text following EP vote>2. Gathering, analysis and dissemination of existing information concerning the knowledge, attitudes and behaviour of the general public and certain target groups with regard to the preventive measures taken in the European Community; devising new Eurobarometer surveys on changes in behaviour patterns in the wake of AIDS.(Amendment 39)Annex(I)(A)(2a)(new)>Text following EP vote>2a. Promote evaluation methods for determining the effectiveness of the preventive measures and the information campaigns aimed at the general public and target groups.(Amendment 40)Annex(I)(B)(3)>Original text>3. Encouragement of initiatives to ascertain and disseminate information about children's and young people's knowledge, attitudes and behaviour in relation to HIV/AIDS and STDs, to examine current practice in providing them with information both within and outside formal settings such as schools and training institutions and to promote the exchange of educational and training material, and the setting up of pilot projects and networks.>Text following EP vote>3. Encouragement of the dissemination of information on HIV/AIDS and STDs (modes of transmission, preventive measures, behaviour and attitudes vis-à-vis the illness) among groups of children and young people, including the young homeless, prostitutes, drug addicts, and those held in detention, both within official structures - schools, sports clubs, associations - and in informal projects and initiatives (particularly street projects); development, to this end, of the exchange of educational and training materials suited to every stage of children's or teenagers' development, using in particular the potential offered by strip cartoons; support for pilot schemes aimed, in particular, at groups of young people lacking a formal structure, with particular emphasis being paid to Member States where there is little or no tradition of formal sex education at primary or post-primary level, and the promotion of information campaigns on the utilizations and the proper use of condoms as the only means of combating the transmission of the HIV virus.(Amendment 65)Annex (I)(C)(4)>Original text>4. Examination and exchanges of information on problems and situations related to groups at risk (drug users, sex workers, homosexuals and bisexuals), risk situations (mobile populations and border areas, penal institutions) and modes of transmission; exchange of experience on harm-reduction measures and preventive actions; and promotion of appropriate preventive measures and of pilot projects.>Text following EP vote>4. Coordination of studies and information on problems related to high-risk practices, (drug addiction, prostitution, homosexuality, bisexuality and unprotected sex with more than one partner, risk situations (haemophilia, mobile populations and border areas, penal institutions, the military, tourism), and the position of women who, as recent surveys have shown, face a greater risk of contamination, with a view to adapting preventive measures to different groups and circumstances and reducing the rate of spread of AIDS and STDs); promotion of exchanges of experience and support for preventive measures such as:- unrestricted sale of condoms of good quality with instructions;- distribution of single-use sterile syringes, with provisions to collect them after use and arrange for their safe disposal;- development of substitution treatment programmes;- promotion of the need to avoid sexual practices which are unsafe or do not avail of the protection offered by condoms.(Amendment 42)Annex(I)(C)(4a)(new)>Text following EP vote>4a. Support for campaigns designed to increase awareness, inform and educate the general public as to the risks of transmission so as to encourage cautious behaviour and responsibility among people who still tend to believe that the transmission of AIDS only concerns 'at-risk' groups.(Amendment 43)Annex(I)(C)(4b)(new)>Text following EP vote>4b. Giving priority to measures to widen the use of condoms.(Amendment 62)Annex (I)(C)(4c) (new)>Text following EP vote>4c. Promotion of voluntary screening to be offered by doctors at key stages in the lives of patients.(Amendment 63)Annex (I)(C)(4d) (new)>Text following EP vote>4d. Taking the necessary measures at Community level to ensure maximum safety of blood products; defining rules and selection procedures for donors (especially with a view to guaranteeing that the process is free and anonymous), harmonizing the nature and the number of the screening tests carried out on samples from donors, establishing a network to enable each sample to be followed up and drawing up a code of good practice for blood transfusions.(Amendment 46)Annex(I)(C)(5)>Original text>5. Promotion of information, advice and counselling to pregnant women who may be at risk of transmitting HIV to their babies; exchange of views and experience on screening pregnant women; and coordination of research on minimizing mother- child transmission.>Text following EP vote>5. Support for specific actions - promotion of information, advice and counselling - aimed at HIV-positive pregnant women who may be at risk of transmitting the virus to their babies; coordination of information and of the results of experience of screening pregnant women; support for research on minimizing mother-child transmission.(Amendment 47)Annex(I)(D)(6)>Original text>6. Exchanges of experience and information concerning models of assistance and support, including the particular difficulties facing families with infected members, and concerning policies and practices on screening and discriminatory situations, promotion of analyses and pilot projects on the psycho-social aspects of the disease, and the setting up of networks of organizations providing information and assistance.>Text following EP vote>6. Promotion of exchanges of experience concerning models of psychological, social, health and medical assistance and support for sufferers and the people around them; in this connection, encouragement of and support for networks of organizations, especially in the voluntary sector, and facilitation of the provision of information to them on the substance of the programme.(Amendment 48)Annex(I)(D)(6a)(new)>Text following EP vote>6a. Financial support for the preparation, publication and distribution of manuals, bulletins and directories, subject to assessment by expert bodies on AIDS, containing information on care and treatment and on the organizations, especially in the voluntary sector, offering assistance and support.(Amendment 49)Annex(I)(D)(6b)(new)>Text following EP vote>6b. Aid for measures designed to achieve the integration of HIV-positive children, especially at school, so as to guarantee them a normal life which, nevertheless, allows them to be monitored and protected.(Amendment 50)Annex(I)(D)(6c)(new)>Text following EP vote>6c. Establishment of a record of the measures taken by the Member States to combat all forms of discrimination, legal or otherwise, e.g. in employment, insurance, lending, housing, education and health care, including any legislation in Member States which sets a different age of consent for homosexual activities than it does for heterosexual activities. Promotion of exchanges of experience on housing aid for patients and their families, in particular with regard to therapeutic accommodation, and with regard to policies to facilitate the provision of day and night accommodation for marginalized persons.(Amendment 51)Annex(I)(D)(6d)(new)>Text following EP vote>6d. Promotion of the establishment of equivalent personal data protection criteria in all the Member States.(Amendment 52)Annex(I)(D)(6e)(new)>Text following EP vote>6e. Adapting the Code of good Clinical Practice with provisions dealing with the specific problems of therapeutic trials.(Amendments 53 and 66)Annex(I)(Da)(new)>Text following EP vote>Da. Cooperation with international organizations and third countries>Text following EP vote>6f. Cooperation on the prevention of AIDS and certain other communicable diseases, to be pursued between the Community and international organizations such as the Council of Europe (ethical questions), Unesco (health education), the appropriate NGOs, and the WHO.>Text following EP vote>6g. Cooperation on the prevention of AIDS and certain other communicable diseases, to be pursued between the Community and associated countries, Central and Eastern European countries which have signed cooperation agreements, or signatory States of the Lomé Convention.6h. In contacts with the Russian Federation, the questions arising from the adoption of the law dealing with mandatory testing for HIV for foreigners entering Russia for a stay longer than three months (signed by President Yeltsin of the Russian Federation on 31 March 1995) should be addressed in such a way that human rights are fully observed and the law is withdrawn.(Amendment 54)Annex(II)(A)(7)>Original text>7. Support for initiatives designed to produce information on levels of vaccination cover in the Community, especially among children, at-risk groups and persons living in certain risk situations, against communicable diseases preventable by vaccination; promotion of initiatives designed to improve the vaccination cover of the general public, and especially of at-risk groups and persons living in certain risk situations; encouragement of measures designed to match vaccination schedules to the epidemiological context.>Text following EP vote>7. Keeping of an up-to-date record, in cooperation with the competent authorities in the Member States and the WHO, of the state of vaccination cover in the Community, above all among children and at-risk groups, especially old people; promotion of awareness among these at-risk groups of the need for vaccination; analysis of the existing vaccination schedules in the Member States and assessment of their impact on the global health of the populations concerned.(Amendment 55)Annex(II)(B)(8)>Original text>8. Contribute to improving the quality of Member States' surveillance systems, taking into account the views of servers and users, and assist in the development of networks, based on agreed methodologies and conditions of transmission of information, prior consultation and coordination of responses.>Text following EP vote>8. Create, at Community level, a warning system with arrangements for the rapid exchange of information in case of epidemic outbreaks or the appearance of a new communicable disease, to be based on:- compatibility as between Member States' systems for the surveillance of communicable diseases;- interconnection of Member States' surveillance systems;- aid for the creation of such systems in Member States where they do not exist at present;- definition of a joint strategy for epidemiological intervention.(Amendment 56)Annex(II)(C)(11)>Original text>11. Encouragement of exchanges between Member States on information campaigns at all levels, development of ways of linking and reinforcing campaigns, such as provision of specific materials; utilization of telephone and other response mechanisms, and development and promotion of activities to complement national efforts, including the setting up of networks and the exchange of experience and expertise.>Text following EP vote>11. Evaluate the impact of information campaigns on sexually transmissible diseases and their prevention, taking account of assessment findings; encourage exchanges between Member States on information campaigns at all levels, development of ways of linking and reinforcing campaigns, such as provision of specific materials via government bodies and NGOs in each country; utilization of telephone and other response mechanisms, and development and promotion of activities to complement national efforts, including the setting up of networks and the exchange of experience and expertise, taking into account the existing systems of information exchange as developed in several Member States with the aid of new technologies in telematics.(Amendment 57)Annex(II)(C)(11a) (new)>Text following EP vote>11a. Undertake coordination in this area with the horizontal programme on health promotion, information, education and training and with the programme of Community action on the prevention of drug dependence.(Amendment 58)Annex(II)(C)(12)>Original text>12. Examination of current training programmes for health and other professionals, and for those whose work brings them into contact with certain communicable diseases; identification of weaknesses and gaps, and devising and promotion of new further training opportunities and programmes.>Text following EP vote>12. Examination of current training programmes, both within and outside the Community, for health and other professionals, and for those whose work brings them into contact with certain communicable diseases; identification of weaknesses and gaps, and devising and promotion of new further training opportunities and programmes, especially in the field of epidemiology; promotion of exchanges among the health professionals involved and of experiences in this area.(Amendment 59)Annex(II)(C)(13)>Original text>13. Improvement of public health practices with regard to the routine surveillance of infectious diseases and epidemic outbreaks whenever and wherever these occur in the Community; development of a Community network of public health epidemiologists with a view to defining common methods and tools and enhancing the capacity for coordinated response.>Text following EP vote>Deleted(Amendment 60)Annex(II)(D), title>Original text>D. Early detection and systematic screening>Text following EP vote>D. Early detection and screening(Amendment 61)Annex(II)(D)(15)>Original text>15. Support for the training of health personnel, in particular in the context of early detection and systematic screening of communicable diseases; cost-benefit analysis of screening for different types of communicable disease, in particular among pregnant women.>Text following EP vote>15. Support for the training of health personnel, in particular in the context of early detection and screening of communicable diseases; cost-benefit analysis of screening for different types of communicable disease, in particular among pregnant women.Legislative resolution embodying Parliament's opinion on the proposal for a European Parliament and Council Decision adopting a programme of Community action on the prevention of AIDS and certain other communicable diseases within the framework for action in the field of public health(COM(94)0413 - C4-0215/94 - 94/0222(COD))(Codecision procedure: first reading)The European Parliament,- having regard to the Commission proposal to Parliament and the Council, COM(94)0413 - 94/0222(COD) ((OJ C 333, 29.11.1994, p. 34.)),- having regard to Articles 189b(2) and 129 of the EC Treaty, pursuant to which the Commission submitted the proposal to Parliament (C4-0215/94),- having regard to Rule 58 of its Rules of Procedure,- having regard to the report of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection and the opinions of the Committee on Budgets, the Committee on Social Affairs and Employment, the Committee on Culture, Youth, Education and the Media, the Committee on Development and Cooperation and the Committee on Legal Affairs and Citizens' Rights (A4-0077/95),1. Approves the Commission proposal, subject to Parliament's amendments;2. Calls on the Commission to alter its proposal accordingly, pursuant to Article 189a(2) of the EC Treaty;3. Calls on the Council to incorporate Parliament's amendments in the common position that it adopts in accordance with Article 189b(2) of the EC Treaty;4. Points out that the Commission is required to submit to Parliament any modification it may intend to make to its proposal as amended by Parliament;5. Instructs its President to forward this opinion to the Council and Commission.