On 10 July 2026, European Commissioner for Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib addressed the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) Implementation Dialogue, urging collective action to strengthen health security. Speaking in Brussels, Lahbib emphasized that preparedness is an ongoing investment, not a one-time fix, and called on stakeholders from industry, healthcare, research, and civil society to identify bottlenecks and improve crisis response.
Lahbib highlighted the EU's recent response to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where the EU delivered over 400 tonnes of medical supplies. She stressed that policy must deliver tangible results for those in need. The speech outlined key elements of the EU's Medical Countermeasures Strategy, including strengthening research and innovation, cooperation with member states and industry, crisis procurement via the RAMP UP initiative, new funding through HERA Invest, wider surveillance via the EU Wastewater Sentinel System, and readiness stress tests through real exercises.
Lahbib's remarks come as the EU seeks to build on lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic and recent health emergencies. The HERA Implementation Dialogue serves as a platform for stakeholders to discuss challenges and improve coordination. Lahbib called on industry to report manufacturing and supply chain bottlenecks, healthcare workers to share frontline challenges, researchers to identify knowledge gaps, and civil society to help reach marginalized populations. She framed health security as a shared responsibility across sectors and borders, with the goal of ensuring equitable access to treatments and vaccines during future crises.
The speech did not announce new concrete measures or numerical targets but reaffirmed existing commitments and called for collaborative improvement. Lahbib's emphasis on cross-sector cooperation and real-time response reflects a policy orientation toward strengthening EU preparedness through inclusive dialogue and practical exercises, rather than top-down mandates.