THE STATE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION REPORT. Europe in a period of transition

THE STATE OF THE EUROPEAN UNION 98 Research into SARS-CoV-19 From the start of the pandemic, the Commission has con- sidered research to be an essential instrument in the fight against covid-19. One of the first initiatives, at the end of January 2020 provided 10 million Euro for this pur- pose. During 2020, the Commission has been boosting on-going projects and the resources intended for them, launching open calls and directly supporting pharma- ceutical companies in the major objective of developing vaccines against covid-19. Consequently, in March 2020, CureVac 7 received 80 million Euro to develop a vaccine based on mRNA technological innovation. To boost covid-19 research, the Commission has used successive Horizon 2020 Programme calls with increasing amounts as the year went on, reaching 1,000 million in committed funds and involving more than 140 teams from the EU and other countries. These resources are intended for epidemiological research, preparation and response to epidemic outbreaks, development of diagnostic methods and treatments, above all concerning vaccines, but also all types of infrastructures and resources for research. One of the most interesting aspects of the EU’s research initiatives was the launch of the European COVID-19 Data Platform, 8 as part of the ERAvsCorona Action Plan 9 to create an open, reliable and scalable environment for storage and worldwide access to DNA sequences, protein structures, preclinical research data and clinical trials, as well as epidemiological data. This platform is the result of joint work between the European Commission, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory European Bioinformatics Institute (EMBL-EBI), the ELIXIR infrastructure and the COMPARE project, as well as the Member States and other partners. 10 7  European Commission. Press Release. 16 March 2020. https://ec.eu - ropa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_474 8  Covid-19 Data Portal. https://www.covid19dataportal.org/ 9  European Commission. DG Research. https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/ default/files/covid-firsteravscorona_actions.pdf 10  European Commission. Coronavirus: Commission launches data sharing platform for researchers. https://ec.europa.eu/commission/ presscorner/detail/en/ip_20_680 It is interesting to highlight the importance of the EU- 4Health 2021-2027 programme, 11 prepared during 2020 and approved by the European Parliament on 9 March 2021, 12 funded with 5,100 million Euro, an amount three times greater than the previous programme for 2014- 2020. The EU4Health 2021-2027 programme, that has been presented by the Commission as “the EU’s am- bitious response to covid-19”, aims to (1) strengthen health systems, (2) improve the medication and medical devices and consumables required in the crises, (3) pro- tect the EU from cross-border threats and (4) improve and promote health in the EU. The EU Covid-19 Vaccine strategy Without the shadow of a doubt, the Vaccine Strategy 13 was the most decisive action, with the greatest impact and the most successful in the EU against the covid-19 pandemic. Consequently, it is also perhaps one of its most controversial and analysed policies, given its health- care importance and its vast political and economic im- plications, both for the EU and its Member States, and internationally. The EU’s Covid-19 Vaccine Strategy 14 meets three goals: (1) Guaranteeing the quality, safety and effective- ness of the vaccines; (2) Guaranteeing all Member States fast access, also contributing to international solidarity in terms of global access to the vaccine, and (3) Guar- anteeing fair access to the vaccine as soon as possible. 11  European Commission. EU4Health 2021-2027 – a vision for a healthier European Union. https://ec.europa.eu/health/funding/eu- 4health_en 12  European Parliament. www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press- room/20210304IPR99207/parliament-gives-green-light-for-new-eu- 4health-programme 13  European Commission. EU Vaccine strategy. https://ec.europa.eu/ info/live-work-travel-eu/coronavirus-response/public-health/eu-vac- cines-strategy_es 14  European Commission. Coronavirus: la Comisión presenta la estrate- gia de la UE en materia de vacunas. (Coronavirus: the Commission pre- sents the EU strategy on vaccines.) Press release. 17/06/2020. https:// ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/es/ip_20_1103