Policy and advocacy

Our mandate 

EHA’s policy and advocacy work is steered and overseen by the European Affairs Committee. The EAC: 

  • Defines our work priorities 
  • Formulates positions  
  • Contributes to engagement with policy makers and stakeholders 

Our policy and advocacy work is supplemented with: 

  • Expertise from our scientific and clinical networks 
  • Alignment and collaboration with patient organizations and other stakeholders 

EHA position papers 

EHA lays down its views and advocacy goals on topics of key importance to its members in a series of position papers:  

 

Our advocacy priorities

Advocacy priorities are what members consider most important. 

Affordable and equitable access

Improving affordable and equitable access to innovative therapies in hematology for patients across Europe is EHA’s overriding advocacy priority. 

Improving access comes with many challenges: 

  • Supply issues, high prices and selective marketing strategies 
  • The lack of innovation in diagnostics and treatments for rare diseases 
  • Regulators’ concerns over evidence gaps 
  • The need for a stronger focus on unmet clinical and patient needs in research and development and in decision making by investors, regulators, and payers 
  • The threat to academic in-house IVD testing, which is crucial for access to precision diagnostics 
  • The implementation of European regulatory frameworks for clinical trials, data sharing, Health Technology Assessment (HTA), and pharmaceuticals 

Support for hematology research

Research in hematology is critical to improving our understanding of diseases, clinical practice, and overall patient care. 

Over the years, the European Union has developed various programs and strategies to fund and incentivize research in the health field. Examples include the EU4Health funding program, the Cancer Mission in Horizon Europe, and the Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan. 

Together with medical societies and patients, we advocate for: 

  • Targeted funding opportunities and increases 
  • EU strategies that enhance research quality and output, are fit-for-purpose, and match the needs of hematology researchers 

Better regulation 

Improving the regulatory environment for hematology is an important advocacy goal for EHA. How EU regulations are designed and implemented needs to:  

  • Match the needs of clinicians and researchers  
  • Facilitate the development and uptake of innovation for the benefit of patients  

EU legislative files

We give advocate for hematology on the following EU legislative files: 

  1. Clinical Trials Regulation (CTR) 
  2. Health Technology Assessment Regulation (HTAR) 
  3. EU Pharmaceutical Legislation 
  4. European Health Data Space (EHDS) 
  5. Substances of Human Origin (SoHO) Legislation 
  6. In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices Regulation (IVDR) 
Share