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Public health and safety

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Description

The promotion of good public health requires not only public policies which support health, but also the creation of supportive environments in which living and working conditions are safe, stimulating, satisfying and enjoyable. The linkage of health, environmental and socio-economic improvements requires inter-sectoral efforts to ensure sustainable public health. Public health and economic growth are intimately interconnected. Old and new technologies – both industrial and non-industrial as well as the import, production and use of chemicals or toxic materialscan pose potential threats to public health. Public health ultimately depends on the ability to manage successfully the interaction between the physical, biological and the socio-economic environment.
Since health is determined to a large extent by factors outside the health area, an effective health policy must involve all relevant policy areas, in particular:

  • social and regional policy
  • taxation
  • environment
  • education
  • research

All EU policies are required by the EU treaty to follow this "Health in all Policies" (HIAP) approach. But to be fully effective, this approach needs to be extended to national, regional and local policies.

This impact area is further specified by the taxonomy terms: health and safety impacts through the socio-economic environment, health and safety impacts through the quality of the environment, energy/waste related health impacts, lifestyle-related health impacts, and health impacts for risk-groups.

Relevant Policies

The EU Health Strategy 'Together for Health: A Strategic Approach for the EU 2008-13' aims to deliver concrete health improvements in Europe. The Strategy focuses on 4 main principles and 3 strategic objectives for improving health in the EU and has received full support by all other EU institutions.
Numerous other policies related to Health and Safety can be found on the EU’s respective webpage:
http://ec.europa.eu/health-eu/health_in_the_eu/policies/index_en.htm

Legal Basis for the Commission to act

Article 152 of the EC Treaty provides for health mainstreaming in other policy areas to the effect that a "high level of human health protection shall be ensured in the definition and implementation of all Community policies and activities". Article 152 has a wider scope among the areas of cooperation between member states. It lists not only diseases and major health scourges but also, more generally, all causes of danger to human health, as well as the general objective of improving health.
EC competence on health can be divided into three elements:

  • a Competence to harmonise Member States laws as regards safety and quality aspects ofblood, organs, tissues and cells (Article 152.4(a)) as well as the achievement of the internalmarket (Article 95).
  • Competence to adopt incentive measures designed to protect and improve human health,excluding any harmonisation of laws and regulations of the Member States (Article152.4(c)).
  • Competence to complement national health policies in order to improve public health,prevent human illness and diseases and obviate sources of danger to human health (Article152.1), as well as to encourage cooperation between Member States and with third countries(Article 152.2 and 152.3).

Depending on the concrete circumstances, the right addressed in article 35 EU Charter could be of relevance in this policy domain.

Web Resources

Health Impact Assessment (HIA)
From 2001 to 2004, the Commission financed a project to provide an in-depth analysis of HIA.
The main result is a HIA guideTranslations*.* which gives details of specific health impacts and assessment procedures and methods.
Health Systems Impact Assessment (HSIA)
In 2007, a Member State working group on health impact assessment and health systems has developed a HSIA methodology and an online EU Health Systems Impact Assessment tool for applying to all EU policies.
Other EU projects on Health Impact Assessment

Effectiveness of health impact assessment – maps the use of HIA in EU and accession countries and evaluates both its effectiveness and the factors that enable or hinder its implementation.

Contact

http://ec.europa.eu/health-eu/contact_en.htm

Related Terms

health and safety impacts through the socio-economic environment

health and safety impacts through the quality of the environment

energy/waste related health impacts

lifestyle-related health impacts

health impacts for risk-groups

Publications and applications

Titel Type of practice Updated date
Communication on the animal testing and marketing ban and on the state of play in relation to alternative methods in the field of cosmetics (2013) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 12:58
European Environment and Health Action Plan 2004-2010 Impact Assessment 2014-02-12 20:23
European Research for Impact Assessment Tools Publication 2014-04-17 14:41
IA Report: Communication demonstrating Carbon Capture and Geological Storage (CCS) in emerging developing countries: financing the EU-China Near Zero Emissions Coal Plant project Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-03 12:25
IA Report: Communication on future EU transport policy Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-05 09:40
IA Report: Communication on limiting Global Climate Change to 2 degrees Celsius Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-03 22:24
IA Report: Communication on Winning the Battle against Global Climate Change Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-05 11:40
IA Report: Electronic identification of bovine animals and deleting the provisions on voluntary beef labelling (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-29 00:03
IA Report: Establishing a Health for Growth Programme, the third programme of EU action in the field of health for the period 2014-2020 (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-28 23:39
IA Report: Establishing a single European railway area, as regards the opening of the market for domestic passenger transport services by rail and the governance of the railway infrastructure (2013) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 20:06
IA Report: Establishment of rules and procedures with regard to the introduction of noise-related operating restrictions at Union airports within a Balanced Approach (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-30 00:32
IA Report: General Union Environment Action Programme to 2020 "Living well, within the limits of our planet" (2012) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-25 18:26
IA Report: Laying down the general principles and requirements of food law, establishing the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and laying down procedures in matters of food safety on the establishment of fees for EFSA (2013) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 13:13
IA Report: On medical devices (2012) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-25 18:40
IA Report: On the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorist financing (2013) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 15:50
IA Report: Periodic roadworthiness tests for motor vehicles and their trailers (2012) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-26 17:40
IA Report: Proposal for a Directive amending Directive 1999/32/EC as regards the sulphur content of marine fuels (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-28 22:04
IA Report: Proposal for a Directive amending Directive 2011/92/EU on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (2012) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-25 18:31
IA Report: Proposal for a Regulation concerning type-approval requirements for the general safety of motor vehicles Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-03 19:29
IA Report: Proposal for a Regulation establishing the Connecting Europe Facility (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-30 12:45
IA Report: Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on fluorinated greenhouse gases (2012) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 21:34
IA Report: Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the implementation of the Single European Sky (2013) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 17:51
IA Report: Proposal for a Regulation on food intended for infants and young children and on food for special medical purposes (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-29 00:09
IA Report: Proposal for a Regulation setting emission performance standards for new light commercial vehicles as part of the Community’s integrated approach to reduce CO2 emissions from light-duty vehicles Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-03 11:54
IA Report: Regulation on guidelines for trans-European energy infrastructure (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-27 12:50
IA Report: Regulation on type-approval of motor vehicles and engines with respect to emissions from heavy duty vehicles (EURO VI) and on access to vehicle repair and maintenance information Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-03 22:15
IA Report: Renewable Energy Road Map Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-03 20:22
IA Report: Roadmap to a Single European Transport Area – Towards a competitive and resource efficient transport system (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-30 01:17
IA Report: The opening of the market for domestic passenger transport services by rail (2013) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-24 20:54
IA Report: Thematic Strategy on Air Pollution Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-05 11:46
IA Report: Type-approval of motor vehicles with respect to emissions and on access to vehicle repair information Application of a Model or Method 2013-09-05 11:23
IA Report: Union guidelines for the development of the Trans-European Transport Network (2011) Application of a Model or Method 2013-07-30 00:50
Integrating Health & Environmental Impact Analysis Publication 2014-06-27 19:19
Medicinal Products for Paediatric Use Impact Assessment 2014-02-11 18:59
The Policy-Relevancy of Impact Assessment Tools: Evaluating Nine Years of European Research Funding Publication 2014-07-09 16:32
The strengths and limits of new forms of EU governance: the cases of mainstreaming and impact assessment in EU public health and sustainable development policy Publication 2013-03-26 15:54

Content for this term

Title Type Updated date
Mari Jüssi Expert 2014-03-17 12:26
Modeling Framework for the Health Impact Assessment of Man-Induced Atmospheric Changes Model 2013-11-26 08:29
Peterson, Kaja Expert 2014-03-05 09:38
Public Health and Safety Impact Area 2014-01-22 16:35
Reis, Stefan Expert 2013-10-29 13:28
Last review by Dirk Wascher about 6 years ago.