Hotrec : Health

Content : Health

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INTRODUCTION

A high level of health protection is a key EU priority. According to the Treaty, Community action shall complement national policies and encourage the cooperation among Member States, with the objective to improve public health.

This means that the main competence for action in the field of health is still held by Member States, but the EU has the responsibility to complement the work done at national level in areas such as, for example, cross-border health threats, patient mobility and health inequalities. However, over the years, EU activities in the field of public health have been growing and increasingly focusing on the objective to promote healthier lifestyles and discourage unhealthy behaviours among European citizens.

EU action in relation to so-called "health determinants" such as tobacco, alcohol and nutrition is directly relevant to the sector because it can deal with issues which involve hospitality businesses (e.g. smoking in public places, serving of alcohol, nutrition labelling etc.)

European initiatives in this field are directly influenced by and closely interlinked with developments at the international level, in particular with the policies of the World Health Organization (WHO).

EU activities in the area of public health fall under the responsibility of the Commission's Directorate General for Health and Consumer Protection (DG SANCO).

European Alcohol and Health Forum

The European Commission launched the European Alcohol and Health Forum on 7 June 2007, in the framework of the EU strategy to “support Member States in reducing alcohol related harm” (COM(2006) 625 final). As indicated in its founding Charter, the objective of the Alcohol Forum is to provide a common platform at EU level for all interested stakeholders (economic operators, medical professions, NGOs) who are willing to “devote time and resources to adopt meaningful actions to prevent alcohol related harm”. Forum members commit themselves to take self-binding actions (the so-called “commitments”) in relation to specific priorities areas and engage themselves to monitor and to report on their implementation.

On the occasion of its 56^th General Assembly in Vilnius (September, 2007), HOTREC decided to join the Alcohol Forum . As a member of the Forum, HOTREC committed itself to invite and stimulate the national associations to take actions to reduce alcohol abuse related harm.

Further information on the Forum, its members and their commitments can be found here .

Commitments

Details on the commitments by HOTREC and its Member Associations can be found by clicking on the following links: