Commission works on funding for e-Health

The remaining challenges for eHealth addressed by the Commission eHealth Action Plan, adopted in December (i.e., Interoperability, research and development, deployment, improving digital skills and health literacy, international cooperation), are according to Mr. Kroes the relevant issues in the pursuit of the general objective, i.e., to encourage eHealth to be deployed and used more widely, and more effectively.

In order to implement the actions identified in the eHealth Action Plan Kroes announces that:

• DG Connect will continue to work on the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing.
  
• The Commission is working on a Green Paper which will launch a public debate on mobile apps for mobile health and wellbeing, an area recognized as very relevant by the Commissioner.
•  On research and innovation, the Commission is currently negotiating proposals for eHealth funding under EU research Framework Programme 7; and from June it will be evaluating proposals under the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme.

Having Commissioner Kroes pushing for adequate funding for eHealth under the EU funding framework programmes is particularly positive for VPH.

• For more details, the full text of the speech is available here.