REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Implementation of the third Programme of Union Action in the field of health in 2020
Date: 2022-07-08
Institutions: Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, European Commission
Subjects: EU financing, EU programme, health care, health care system, implementation of the budget, programme budgeting, public health, smoking, vaccination

EN 

  EN 

   EUROPEAN COMMISSION  Brussels, 8.7.2022  COM(2022) 328 final  REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL Implementation of the third Programme of Union Action in the field of health in 2020 {SWD(2022) 186 final}  
 
 
Table of contents 

1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................. 2 

2. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR .......................................................................................... 5 

3. BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION ........................................................................................ 7 

3.1 Priorities ............................................................................................................................... 9 

3.2 Execution of the operational budget by financing mechanism........................................ 12 

3.3 Beneficiaries ....................................................................................................................... 13 

4. MAIN COMMUNICATION ACTIVITIES ..................................................................... 13 

5. CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................... 14 

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1. INTRODUCTION 
This report covers the implementation of the annual work programme for 2020 (the 2020 AWP) 

of  the  third  Programme  for  the  Union's  action  in  the  field  of  health  (‘the  Programme’). 

Article 13(1)  of  the  Regulation  that  established  the  programme1  requires  the  European 

Commission to report to the Programme Committee on the implementation of all actions funded 

through  the  Programme,  and  to  keep  the  European  Parliament  and  the  Council  informed.  This 

report meets the latter requirement and describes how the Programme was implemented and the 

budget was used in 2020. 

The Commission staff working document accompanying this report presents the key actions co-

funded  under  the  Programme  for  which  results  became  available  in  2020,  together  with  tables 

detailing all co-funded activities and contracts in the Programme’s 2020 operational budget. 

The 2020 AWP was built around a number of priority areas, but also addresses health inequalities 

as a cross-cutting issue.  

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the implementation of the annual work programme 

Following the COVID-19 outbreak in the first quarter of 2020, the Programme’s running actions2 

in  the  area  of  health  security  were  activated  in  an  ‘emergency  mode’  and  steered  to  fight  the 

pandemic.  Key  examples  are  the  joint  action  ‘Healthy  gateways’3,  which  supported  the 

coordination among EU countries to improve capacity for combating cross-border health threats 

at  points  of  entry,  including  ports,  airports  and  ground  crossings;  and  the  joint  action  on 

Strengthened  International  Health  Regulations  and  preparedness  (SHARP4),  which  saw  the 

collaboration  with  the  European  Centre  for  Disease  Prevention  and  Control’s  EVD-LabNet 

(Emerging  Viral  Diseases-Expert  Laboratory  Network)  to  ensure  quality  control  and  capacity 

1 Regulation (EU) No 282/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 March 2014 on the establishment of a third 
Programme for the Union’s action in the field of health (2014-2020) and repealing Decision No 1350/2007/EC (OJ L 86, 21.3.2014, 
p. 1). 
2  These  actions  carried  out  by  the  health  programme  created  synergy  with  and  complemented  the  emergency  measures  for 
immediate response mobilized by the EU, under specific and dedicated instruments (such as the Union Civil Protection Mechanism, 
the Emergency Support Instrument and the EU Solidarity Fund, the Joint Procurement for Medical Countermeasures) an  other 
programmes (e.g. Horizon 2020 Framework Programme for Research and Innovation). 
3 www.healthygateways.eu 
4 The JA SHARP (www.sharpja.eu) supports coordination among EU reference laboratories to prevent, detect and respond to 

biological outbreaks, chemical contamination and environmental and unknown threats to human health 

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building  for  precise  diagnostics  for  COVID-19  at  an  early  phase  of  the  pandemic,  and 

demonstrated the importance of using laboratory networks as a preparedness and response tool. 

Due to the orientation of human resources in DG SANTE to COVID-19 pandemic activities, other 

activities were reduced, such as the secretariat of the Scientific Committees, thus resulting in less 

Opinions adopted by the Committees, six adopted by the the Scientific Committee on Consumer 

Safety (SCCS) and one by the Scientific Committee on Health, Environmental and Emerging Risks 

(SCHEER).  

Due to restrictions on movement, the two conferences organised by the German and Portuguese 

Presidency of the EU Council, were held on line, as well as the Information days organised by the 

Consumers,  health,  agriculture  and  food  executive  agency  (Chafea)  to  present  the  funding 

opportunities under the 2020 work programme. Several timelines to submit proposals for projects 

or joint actions had to be postponed due to the fact that health authorities of Member States were 

busy  dealing  with  the  COVID-19  pandemic.  However,  despite  all  these  difficulties,  the 

implementation  of  the  2020  annual  work  plan  was  not  significantly  affected,  also  in  terms  of 

budget consumption.  

Under  Objective  1  ‘Promote  health,  prevent  diseases,  and  foster  supportive  environments  for 

healthy  lifestyles’,  the  EU  provided  a  total  funding  of  EUR  11  097  241.78  for  11  non-

governmental organisations (NGOs)5, one joint action, one international organisation, two other 

actions  and  10  service  contracts.  The  11  NGOs  had  submitted  proposals  for  a  specific  grant 

agreement (SGA) under a framework partnership agreement signed in 2017. The joint action is for 

the  exchange  of  best  practices  in  the  implementation  of  the  Tobacco  Products  Directive 

(2014/40/EU)6 and for implementing and delegated acts relating to e-cigarette legislation. 

Under  Objective  2  ‘Protect  Union  citizens  from  serious  cross-border  health  threats’,  the  EU 

provided  a  total  funding  of  EUR  3  933  955.42  for  four  projects  that  focus  on  improving 

5 European Public Health Association (EUPHA), European Public Health Alliance, Smoke Free Partnership, European Network 
for Smoking and Tobacco Prevention, Obesity Training And Information Services in Europe - phase 2, Schools for health in Europe 
Foundation, TBEC: strengthening TB response in the WHO Europe region, AIDS Action Europe - Stronger together, Correlation 
- European Harm Reduction Network, Alzheimer Europe, European Cancer Leagues -Collaborating for impact in cancer control. 

6 Directive 2014/40/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 3 April 2014 on the approximation of the laws, regulations 
and  administrative  provisions  of  the  Member  States  concerning  the  manufacture,  presentation  and  sale  of  tobacco  and  related 
products and repealing Directive 2001/37/EC (OJ L 127, 29.4.2014, p. 1).  

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vaccination  access  and  uptake.  One  of  the  projects  is  IMMUNION  (Improving  IMMunisation 

cooperation in the European UNION) focuses on increasing vaccine uptake and is thus part of the 

response to the 2018 Council Recommendation on vaccination, while also adding value to EU and 

national initiatives, particularly the Coalition for Vaccination. 

Under  Objective  3  ‘Contribute  to  innovative,  efficient  and  sustainable  health  systems’,  the  EU 

provided  a  total  funding  of  EUR  31  850  207,93  to  support  the  operating  of  one  NGO  (Health 

Action International) and for several actions fostering innovative, efficient and sustainable health 

systems. One joint action concerned the exchange and implementation of best practices in the field 

of mental health, with a particular focus on suicide prevention and the reform of mental health 

services. Moreover, a joint action, ‘Towards the European Health Data Space’ (TEHDAS) was 

launched to help establish a European Health Data Space7 – an important advance in the sharing 

of health data. A direct grant was awarded to the European Directorate for the Quality of Medicine 

and  Healthcare  to  help  it  establish  harmonised  quality  standards  and  reference  materials  for 

substances of biological origin in line with the EU’s initiatives on animal protection. 

Under  Objective  4  ‘Facilitate  access  to  better  and  safer  healthcare  for  Union  citizens’,  the  EU 

provided total co-funding of EUR 7 710 843.21 to support 3 NGOs8 contributing to EU health 

objectives, to fund the presidency conference on “Availability, Accessibility and Affordability of 

Medicines and Medical devices”, organised under the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the 

European Union, and to fund service contracts. 

The total expenditure for cross-cutting activities related to all objectives, including the joint action 

to  support  the  Programme  National  Focal  Points,  the  2020  EU  Health  Award,  communication 

activities, information communication technology (ICT) and expert evaluators was EUR 13 595 

548.80. 

The Commission and the Consumers, Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency (Chafea) 

ensured that the programme’s results were publicised widely through appropriate communication 

activities.  Those  activities  focused  on  the  key  communication  priorities  indicated  by  the 

7 EUR-Lex - 52022PC0197 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu) 
8 Thalia: action against thalassemia, EURORDIS, SAVDON: World Marrow Donors Association. 

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Commission’s  Directorate-General  for  Health  and  Food  Safety  (DG  SANTE)  -  for  example, 

vaccination,  COVID-19,  promoting  healthy  lifestyles,  health  workforce,  health  technology 

assessment  and  digital  health.  Promotional  activities  were  organised  in  cooperation  with  the 

National Focal Points (NFPs) network9, including two information days in the format of webinars 

to promote the funding opportunities available under the 2020 AWP.  

2. HIGHLIGHTS OF THE YEAR 
The 2020 AWP broadly addressed the four specific objectives of the Programme.  

Under  Objective  1  ‘Promote  health,  prevent  diseases  and  foster  supportive  environments  for 

healthy lifestyles’, a Joint Action on Tobacco Control (JATC2)10 was launched to facilitate the 

exchange of good practices between the Member States, thereby improving the implementation of 

the  Tobacco  Products  Directive  and  of  implementing  and  delegated  acts  relating  to  e-cigarette 

regulation. One of JATC2’s aims is to ensure greater consistency in the Directive’s application 

and thereby ensuring a fair single market for tobacco and related products, with a particular focus 

on market surveillance and enforcement. It will assess the existing legal framework for tobacco 

advertising and the advertising of emerging products. 

Among the several NGOs receiving an operating grant, there was  the Association of European 

Cancer  Leagues  (ECL),  a  unique  platform  bringing  together  various  cancer  leagues  active  at 

regional, national and international level to achieve a cancer-free Europe. The ECL supports the 

cancer leagues in the implementation of the Council Recommendation on Cancer Screening, while 

also uniting them to advocate for equal access to treatment, support, and rehabilitation for cancer 

patients. Finally, ECL advocates for the European Guide for quality improvement in cancer control 

to be better established and considered in national cancer plans.  The active involvement of the 

ECL  in  fighting  cancer  has  been  of  great  significance  particularly  in  the  case  of  the  EU 

Pharmaceutical  Strategy,  on  which  the  ECL  has  issued  a  position  paper,  sharing  its  views  and 

9 The NFPs are designated by EU Member States and other countries participating in the programme to help the EC 
promote the programme and to communicate its results and information on its impact. 
10 JAOTC2 is a 3-year joint action with EC co-funding of MEUR 2.5 

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reinforcing  the  proposed  patient-centred  approach.  This  involvement  is  also  linked  with  the 

implementation of the Europe Beating Cancer Plan. 

Under Objective 2 ‘Protect Union citizens from serious cross-border health threats’, three projects 

to  boost  vaccination  uptake  were 

funded.  Projects  RISE-Vac11, 

ImmuHubs12  and 

ActToVAx4NAM13  ‘Increased  Access  To  Vaccination  for  Newly  Arrived  Migrants’  aim  to 

increase  access  to  vaccination  for  disadvantaged,  isolated  and  difficult-to-reach  groups  and  for 

newly  arrived  migrants  (taking  a  life  course  approach).  In  particular,  ActToVAx4Nam  targets 

exclusively newly arrived migrants – in first-line, transit and destination countries – and aims to 

ensure fair access to vaccination. 

Under  Objective  3  ‘Contribute  to  innovative,  efficient  and  sustainable  health  systems’,  Chafea 

launched a service contract14 for the provision of joint health technology assessment (HTA) work 

to support ongoing EU cooperation on HTA. This service will address existing methodological 

issues in  order to  promote  joint  work on HTA, while also  supporting EU cooperation on HTA 

beyond  the  end  of  the  EUnetHTA  joint  action.  It  will  therefore  provide  relevant  input  to  the 

development of a new legal framework on HTA. Given that Regulation (EU) 2021/228215 on HTA 

entered  into  force  in  January  2022  and  will  become  applicable  in  January  2025,  this  service 

contract  is  expected  to  actively  support  the  implementation  of  the  new  Regulation  which  is 

currently in its preparatory phase. 

In particular, the service contract will lead to the: 

 

further development of HTA methodology to be applied when carrying out joint clinical 

assessments  (JCAs) and  joint  scientific  consultations  (JSCs). It  will  address  those areas 

where opinions still diverge with a view to further developing the methodology for joint 

work and making it easier to reach a common approach when carrying out JCAs and JSCs;  

  completion  of  eight  parallel  JSCs  for  medicinal  products  or  a  minimum  of  six  JSCs, 

enabling one of the most successful products of the EUnetHTA joint action to continue; 

11 duration: 3 years, EU co-funding: EUR 951 120. 
12 duration 3 years, EU co-funding:EUR 989 104 
13 Duration: 3 years, EU co-funding: EUR 994 393 
14 for an amount of MEUR 3, and a duration of 3 years 
15 EUR-Lex - 32021R2282 - EN - EUR-Lex (europa.eu) 

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  completion of two JCAs for medicinal products and four JCA/CAs for medical devices if 

possible, but in any event at least one JCA for medicinal products and two JCA/CAs for 

medical devices; 

  coordination  of  the  above-mentioned  joint  activities,  including  interaction  with 

stakeholders’ representatives (patients, health professionals, industry), academia, relevant 

EU and international organisations and HTA initiatives. 

Under Objective 4 ‘Facilitate access to better and safer healthcare for Union citizens’, a study was 

launched to support the impact assessment for the reviews of Directive 2002/98/EC on safety and 

quality of human blood and blood components and of Directive 2004/23/EC on safety and quality 

of human tissues and cells, as well as of these two directives’ implementing acts.  The contract 

duration was nine months and helped the Commission prepare an impact assessment to support its 

proposal to amend existing EU legislation on blood, tissues, and cells. 

The specific objectives are to:  

  provide  a  description  of  the  baseline  situation,  summarise  the  key  elements  of  the 

evaluation, and complement problem definition by gathering and analysing evidence on 

the impact and other aspects of borderline technologies/therapies together with the lessons 

learned from the COVID-19 pandemic;  

  measure the likely significant economic, social and environmental impacts of each of the 

policy options; 

  analyse and compare the effectiveness, efficiency and consistency of policy options. 

3. BUDGET IMPLEMENTATION 
The overall budget for the Programme was EUR 449 000 000. This included EUR 30 600 000 for 

the operating costs of Chafea which assisted the Commission in the Programme implementation. 

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Chafea  provided  the  Commission  with  technical,  scientific  and  administrative  assistance  in 

implementing the Programme and its predecessor programmes since 200516. 

Chafea organises annual calls for proposals, coordinates the evaluation of submissions, negotiates, 

signs  and  manages  grant  agreements,  and  communicates  the  results  of  the  actions.  It  is  also 

responsible for most procurement procedures. 

The budget set out in the 2020 AWP was EUR 71 556 963. This can be analysed as follows: 

  operational expenditure funded by the EU: EUR 63 624 000 – corresponding to budget line 

17 03 01 ‘Encouraging innovation in health, increasing the sustainability of health systems 

and protecting Union citizens from serious cross-border health threats’; 

  operational  expenditure  funded  by  EFTA/EEA17  and  other  non-EU  countries18 

participating in the programme: EUR 1 882 963; 

  administrative expenditure: EUR 1 500 000 – corresponding to budget line 17 01 04 02; 

  Chafea’s operating costs: EUR 4 550 000 – corresponding to budget line 17 01 06 02. 

The  total  budget  for  operational  expenditure  was  EUR  65  506  963.  DG  SANTE  and  Chafea 

between  them  committed  a  total  of  EUR  68  187  797.40  under  the  2020  AWP  (105%  of  the 

operational  expenditure  budget).  Chafea  committed  EUR  40  430  042.00  and  DG  SANTE 

committed  EUR  27  657  755.14  –  covering  some  of  the  procurement  commitments  and  other 

actions.   

The EUR 2 680 834, 14 difference between the voted operational budget and the final committed 

budget is due to internal transfers that occurred during the global transfer exercise resulting from 

the COVID-19 pandemic. 

16 Commission Decision 2004/858/EC of 15 December 2004 setting up an executive agency, the ‘Executive Agency 
for the Public Health Programme’, for the management of Community action in the field of public health – pursuant 
to  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No  58/2003  (OJ  L  369,  16.12.2005,  p.  73)  amended  by  Commission 
Decision 2008/544/EC of 20 June 2008 amending Decision 2004/858/EC in order to transform the ‘Executive Agency 
for the Public Health Programme’ into the ‘Executive Agency for Health and Consumers’ (OJ L 173, 3.7.2008, p. 27). 
From December 2014, the Executive Agency for Health and Consumers (EAHC) was replaced by the Consumers, 
Health, Agriculture and Food Executive Agency (Chafea) by Commission Implementing Decision 2014/927/EU of 
17 December 2014 amending Implementing Decision 2013/770/EU in order to transform the ‘Consumers, Health and 
Food  Executive  Agency’  into  the  ‘Consumers,  Health,  Agriculture  and  Food  Executive  Agency’  (OJ  L  363, 
18.12.2014, p. 183). 
17 Norway and Iceland. 
18 Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Moldova. 

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3.1 Priorities 

In 2020, the total operational expenditure commitment of EUR 68 187 797.14 was assigned to the 
following four specific Programme objectives:  

1.  promotion  of  health  –  EUR  11  097  241.78  (16%  of  the  total  operational  budget)  for 

promoting  health,  preventing  diseases  and  fostering  supportive  environments  for  healthy 

lifestyles, taking into account the ‘health in all policies’ principle; 

2.  health threats – EUR 3 933 955.42 (6% of the total operational budget) for protecting EU 

citizens from serious cross-border health threats; 

3.  health systems – EUR 31 850 207.93 (47% of the total operational budget) for promoting 

innovative, efficient and sustainable health systems; 

4.  better and safer healthcare – EUR 7 710 843.21 (11% of the total operational budget) for 

facilitating access to better and safer healthcare for people in the EU. 

In  addition,  cross-cutting  activities  (IT  activities,  communication,  reimbursement  of  expert 

evaluators) and other activities (e.g. Scientific Committees, Expert Panel and other expert group 

activities,  studies to assist in developing health policies), amounted to EUR 13 595 248.80 (20% 

of the operational budget). 

Chart 1 below shows the allocation of the budget among the different objectives.   

Chart 1: 2020 operational budget per objective of the Programme 

9 

 
 
 
2020 Operational Budget per objective of the third 
health programme

20%

16%

6%

11%

47%

Promotion of health

Health Threats

Health systems

Better and safer healthcare Horizontal Activities

In relation to the 2020 budget allocation for each of the Programme’s thematic priorities, Chart 2 

below shows that activities under thematic priority 3 – to contribute to innovative, efficient and 

sustainable health systems – were allocated the largest share of the budget, followed by horizontal 

or cross-cutting activities, health promotion and vaccination initiatives. 

10 

 
 
 
 
Chart 2: 2020 operational budget per thematic priority (in EUR million) 

2020 operational budget per thematic priority (EUR in millions)

14

12

10

8

6

4

2

0

The programme was implemented through a wide range of funding instruments. These included: 

  project grants, 

  operating grants in support of NGOs, 

  actions co-financed with Member State authorities (joint actions), 

  direct grant agreements with international organisations, 

  public procurement, 

  other actions, such as support for the scientific committees, administrative agreements with 

the Joint Research Centre and Eurostat, and grants for conferences organised by Council 

presidencies. 

Competitive  calls  were  used  to  select  actions  for  funding,  for  example  for  projects  and 

procurement.  Joint  actions,  grants  to  international  organisations  and  conferences  organised  by 

presidencies of the Council of the EU are direct grant agreements because there is a monopoly 

situation (de jure or de facto), meaning that there is only one possible service provider.  

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External reviewers (joint actions), DG SANTE and Chafea officials evaluate proposals to ensure 

the quality of these co-funded actions. 

The administrative budget  relates to expenditure  on items such as studies, meetings of experts, 

communication, and technical and administrative assistance for IT systems. 

3.2 Execution of the operational budget by financing mechanism 

Type of Financing Mechanism 

Implementation (EUR) 

Share of mechanism in total 
implemented budget (%) 

1. Grants under calls for proposals or 
by invitation: 

1.1 Project Grants / HP-PJ 

1.2 Operating grants / SGAs 

1.3 Joint action grants 

1.4. Conference grants to the Member 
States holding the Presidency of the EU 
1.5 Direct grant agreements with 
international organisations 

TOTAL GRANTS  

2. Procurement(service contracts, 
prizes, horizontal) 

7 452 705.51 

5 852 209.00 

12 408 994.17 

162 984.92 

5 730 000.00 

31 606 893.60 

26 708 292.21 

Managed by Chafea 

                          8 273 148.40  

Managed by DG SANTE 

                        18 435 143.81  

4. Other Actions  

Managed By Chafea 

9 872 611.33 

650 000.00 

Managed by DG SANTE 

                          9 222 611.33  

5. Budget implemented under 2020 
AWP 

Managed by Chafea 

68 187 797.14 

40 530 042.00 

Managed by DG SANTE 

                        27 657 755.14  

Total available budget under 2020 
AWP 

                                   Additional Credits 

                        65 506 963.00  
-                               2 680 834.14 

By Chafea 

                                                    - 

12 

11.30% 

8.90% 

18.90% 

0.24% 

8.74% 

48% 

40% 

13% 

27% 

10.90% 

0.90% 

10% 

105% 

62% 

37.47% 

100.00% 

 5% 

 
 
 
  
  
  
  
  
  
By DG Sante 

                                2 680 834.14 

                  Total with transferred credits 

                             68 187 797.14 

3.3 Beneficiaries 
In  2020,  Chafea  and  DG  SANTE  signed  over  8019  grants  and  contracts  with  beneficiaries  and 

service providers: governmental organisations, academic institutions, NGOs, private companies, 

and  individual  experts20.  Other  beneficiaries  included  international  organisations  and  EU 

departments. Around 286 beneficiaries and economic operators received EU funding, with the two 

main categories being private companies (for procurement and other actions) and governmental 

organisations (for joint actions and for projects).  

4. MAIN COMMUNICATION ACTIVITIES 
In 2020, Chafea organised communication activities to raise the visibility of results and successes 

achieved under the Programme, to promote DG SANTE’s specific communication priorities and 

to boost efforts to reach out to potential Programme beneficiaries. Extensive information on these 

activities can be found in Chafea’s 2020 activity report for the programme21.  

The information webinars held on 4 and 5 March 2020 were the main events of the year, with over 

350 attendees. The webinars highlighted the programme’s success stories and presented EU health-

funding  opportunities  under  the  2020  AWP  (for  example,  calls  for  projects,  joint  actions  and 

tenders).  

Moreover, in cooperation with the programme’s NFPs, Chafea organised two information days in 

Italy and Sweden with over 100 participants on topics connected with national policy priorities. In 

addition,  60  people  participated  in  an  online  information  day  meeting  on  joint  actions  on 

8 June 2020. 

19 Joint actions (4), project grants (10), operating grants /specific grant agreements (SGA) (15), direct grant agreement 
(4), prizes (3), presidency conferences (2), tenders (37) and other actions (10).  
20 This figure does not include contracts with individual experts participating in scientific committees, evaluators of 
calls for proposals, etc. 
21  annual-activity-report-2020-chafea_en.pdf  (europa.eu)  or  Annual  activity  report  2020  -  Consumers,  Health, 
Agriculture and Food Executive Agency | European Commission (europa.eu) 

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The two following events enabled to further communicate on the Programme implementation and 

results. 

  2020 European Public Health Conference, 20-23 November 2020, online event with two 

sessions and a virtual stand. 

  16th World Congress on Public Health 2020, 12-17 October 2020, online event with two 

sessions and a virtual stand. 

Online communication activities in 2020 exceeded the set target (150 news items a year). Over 

220 news items on Chafea’s website were cross-linked with social media promotion, webinars on 

funding opportunities, communication guidance for beneficiaries and an upgrade of the database’s 

download  features.  In  addition,  cross-linking  with  DG  SANTE’s  website  and  the  Health-EU 

Newsletter  improved  the  communication  of  Commission  measures  to  fight  the  COVID-19 

pandemic. 

Chafea produced a number of electronic publications, publicly available on its website and on the 

EU bookshop website, which can be printed on demand. These include three information sheets 

on cancer22, integrated care23 and substances of human origin (SoHO)24. They are available in all 

23 of the EU’s official languages. 

5. CONCLUSION 
While  reorienting  and  gearing  a  proportion  of  its  activities  and  resources  towards  fighting  the 

COVID-19  pandemic,  the  programme  continued  the  implementation  of  its  actions  under  the 

programme with a view to enhancing and further consolidating key achievements over the entire 

implementation  period  2014-2020.  Under  exceptional  circumstances  due  to  the  COVID-19 

outbreak,  the  programme  performed  well  and  has  been  effectively  implemented  in  2020,  thereby 

contributing to better health protection through its policies and activities, in accordance with Article 168 of 

the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. 

22 Cancer - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu) 
23 Integrated care - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu) 
24 Substances of human origin (SoHO) - Publications Office of the EU (europa.eu) 

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