Health organisations urge EU member states to adopt their clean air negotiating position
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In view of ongoing deliberations on the revision of the EU’s Ambient Air Quality Directive (AAQD), health organisations representing the European health sector, including medical doctors, healthcare professionals, patient organisations and health insurance funds, urge member states to act on the unacceptably high health burden from air pollution and to adopt a negotiating position this week, so that the AAQD trilogues can start, and the revision process can be concluded before the 2024 EU elections.
Air pollution is the top environmental risk to health in Europe. Everyone is vulnerable to its impacts, and some are more at risk than others. People’s level of vulnerability is outside of individual control, as it evolves with age, health condition, socio-economic status, as well as where people live, study, or work.
The update of the EU’s clean air standards is a unique and not-to-be-missed opportunity for preventing hundreds of thousands of premature deaths and a significant health burden from chronic diseases, including respiratory conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, heart disease, strokes, and cancer, as well as infectious respiratory diseases, including COVID-19.
Updated clean air standards will bring significant immediate and long lasting health and economic benefits, which clearly outweigh the implementation cost of the revised law, as demonstrated by the EU Commission impact assessment.
“All national medical associations across Europe agree: we need better air quality, and public authorities and national governments need to act. Hundreds of thousands premature deaths in Europe are attributable to air pollution every year. The EU air quality standards need to be urgently updated. “
For more information, see HEAL's website.