Public health: network for epidemiological surveillance and control of communicable diseases in the European Community EWRS

In adopting the recommendation for second reading by Mr Christian CABROL (UPE, F) on creating a network for the epidemiological surveillance of communicable diseases, the European Parliament amended the common position of the Council, retabling a number of the amendments adopted at first reading, including in particular the amendments concerning the setting-up of a European Centre for the Surveillance of Communicable Diseases, a permanent Community body which Parliament deemed essential for the effective monitoring of diseases at European level. The Centre would be responsible for gathering all relevant information identified at national level at Eurocentres based in each Member State. It again called for an early warning system to be set up as part of the Community system for preventing communicable diseases. The other amendments concerned: -the need to use consistent definitions and compatible technologies, -the adoption of emergency measures if communicable diseases appear in a Member State, -the adoption of predetermined methods of gathering information and coordinating measures to control communicable diseases; -the type of diseases covered by the network: Parliament did not accept the option advocated by the Council, which wished the list of diseases in the annex to the proposal to be regarded as purely indicative, -the financing of the measure: Parliament rejected the Council's proposal that existing funds should be tapped from the budgets of existing programmes to pay for the network. The programme should be covered by Community funding. �