Event urges inclusion of heart failure in a European Cardiovascular Health Plan

News & Events

23 October 2024
AUTHOR: HFPN Admin

 

On 22 October, the Hungarian Society of Cardiology Working Group on Heart Failure and Myocardial Diseases hosted an event in Budapest to discuss the prioritisation of heart failure in a European Cardiovascular Health Plan.

Under the patronage of Professor Béla Merkely, Rector of Semmelweis University, and with assistance from the Heart Failure Policy Network, the event brought together experts and policymakers to present the case for improving heart failure diagnosis and care. Representatives from the Hungarian Ministry of Interior participated in the event.

Topics included enhancing quality of life for people with heart failure; creating efficient and sustainable care delivery, including through telemedicine; securing early detection; increasing workforce capacity through multidisciplinary teams and specialist nursing roles; and advancing research and policy action to improve heart failure outcomes.

The event culminated in the launch of a policy submission that the Heart Failure Policy Network co-developed with the Hungarian Society of Cardiology, and which has been endorsed by members of the European heart failure community. The submission outlines why it is essential to address heart failure to reduce the burden of cardiovascular disease in Europe, calling for policy action in five priority areas.

As the leading cause of preventable hospitalisations in Europe, heart failure presents an enormous burden to people and health systems, costing nearly €30 billion every year. Tackling heart failure through earlier diagnosis and best-practice care could cut these hospitalisations by nearly one-third. It is therefore essential that the EU commits to improving heart failure detection and care as part of any future initiative on cardiovascular health.

By initiating the development of a European Cardiovascular Health Plan, the Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU has taken a crucial step forward for improving population health and securing the future sustainability of European health systems. However, key priorities for improving heart failure outcomes must feature prominently in such a plan. These priorities must then be taken up by policymakers across the region if the EU is to meet United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3.4: to reduce deaths from non-communicable diseases by one-third by 2030.

The Heart Failure Policy Network thanks the Hungarian Society of Cardiology and Professor Béla Merkely for hosting the event, and we look forward to working with the current and future Presidencies of the Council of the EU to advance the prioritisation of heart failure.

Download the submission

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The Heart Failure Policy Network is an independent, multidisciplinary platform made possible with financial support from AstraZeneca, Roche Diagnostics and Bayer. The content produced by the Network is not biased toward any specific treatment or therapy. All outputs are guided and endorsed by the Network’s members. All members provide their time for free. The Network is hosted by The Health Policy Partnership .