““Competitiveness in healthcare should be measured not only by innovation, but also by whether patients have access to it.” This was stated by the Bulgarian MEP from the Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats Christian Vigenin during the presentation of the priorities of the Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU to the European Parliament’s Committee on Public Health (SANT).

In his remarks, Vigenin congratulated Ireland on the motto of its presidency: “Strength Through Unity,” which echoes the Bulgarian motto “Unity Makes Strength,” and emphasized that healthcare is not merely a social policy but a key factor for Europe’s competitiveness, sustainability, and security.

He pointed out that significant disparities in access to modern medical care continue to exist among member states, particularly in Central and Eastern European countries, as well as in rural and border regions. In his view, this is precisely why healthcare must receive clear and adequate funding in the EU’s next Multiannual Financial Framework.

Vigenin raised the question of whether the Irish Presidency would ensure that negotiations on the European Biotechnology Act, the pharmaceutical package, and the European Health Data Space will help reduce disparities among member states, rather than further concentrating investment, clinical trials, and innovation in the largest markets.

In response, Ireland’s Minister of Health, Jennifer Carroll McNeill She emphasized that reducing inequalities means, above all, equal access to clinical trials and new therapies. According to her, this is precisely why the Irish Presidency has made the Biotechnology Act one of its priorities; the Act is intended to ensure that a country’s attractiveness does not depend solely on the size of its market, but on the quality of its scientific and clinical capacity.