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On 28 September 2022, the European Commission proposed a revision of the 2009 Directive on the protection of workers from the risk of exposure to asbestos. The aim of the proposal is to lower the occupational exposure limit (OEL) value, which is mandatory in all Member States. Despite the total ban on the use of asbestos in the EU, exposure to this carcinogenic fibre, which is still present in millions of buildings, kills more than 70 000 people a year in Europe. The Committee on Employment and Social ...

Air pollution is the single largest environmental health risk in the EU and causes significant damage to ecosystems. As part of the European Green Deal's zero pollution ambition, on 26 October 2022 the Commission tabled a proposal for a revision of the Ambient Air Quality Directives. The proposed directive would set air quality standards for 2030 that are more closely aligned with the Word Health Organization's recommendations, as updated in 2021. It would also include a mechanism for the standards ...

Mental health has become a major issue of public health, and economic and social concern across the whole of the EU. Collecting data is crucial for monitoring mental health, developing effective policies and addressing the growing mental health challenges. It is estimated that more than 84 million people in the EU are struggling with mental health problems. The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent economic crisis have placed a huge strain on everyone's mental health. The restrictive measures taken ...

The study focuses on the analysis of national legislation and best practices across the EU Member States that address health and safety requirements for the protection of mental health at work. The study reveals that efforts at EU and national level are currently insufficient to protect employees from psychosocial risks. EU-level legislation on work-related psychosocial risks is therefore needed to set the minimum health and safety requirements for mental health at work. This would compel Member ...

The study focuses on the analysis of national legislation and best practices across the EU Member States that address health and safety requirements for the protection of mental health at work. The study reveals that efforts at EU and national level are currently insufficient to protect employees from psychosocial risks. EU-level legislation on work-related psychosocial risks is therefore needed to set the minimum health and safety requirements for mental health at work. This would compel Member ...

The evolution of HIV from a fatal to a long-term condition poses challenges for people living with HIV and for health and social care systems across the EU. This paper aims to help Members of the European Parliament and other interested stakeholders to obtain a better picture of the current situation in relation to HIV among people living with HIV in the EU, HIV-related stigma and issues which impact on health-related quality of life for people living with HIV.

The IA provides a well-evidenced description of the problem and its scale and sufficiently substantiates the need to lower the current EU occupational exposure level for asbestos. However, the IA could have explained the evaluation findings in more detail and clarified the problem drivers further. The IA clearly explains the scientific opinion of the Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC), according to which there is no safe exposure level and therefore the RAC did not recommend any specific OEL. The ...

Asbestos is one of the main causes of work-related types of cancer in the EU. More specifically, asbestos-related risks are set to pose a major challenge in the context of the upcoming European Green Deal 'renovation wave', during which it is expected that millions of buildings will be renovated or demolished. In 2009, the EU adopted Directive 2009/148/EC, the Asbestos at Work Directive (AWD), in order to protect workers from and prevent their exposure to asbestos-related health risks, including ...

This study, commissioned by the Policy Department for Citizens’ Rights and Constitutional Affairs for the Committee on Petitions (PETI) of the European Parliament, provides an overview of the legal and environmental context in which nitrogen emissions to water are measured in the EU, and how the European Commission makes sure that monitoring systems and their results are comparable throughout the EU. The study explores the development of nitrate concentrations in the EU in view of the European Green ...

These proceedings summarise the presentations and discussions before the European Parliament’s Health Working Group as part of the workshop on ‘Novel tobacco products and their effects on health’, held on 30 November 2022. The four presentations touched, inter alia, upon the current state of research on health effects, their role in harm reduction and regulatory recommendations. These workshop proceedings were provided by the Policy Department for Economic, Scientific and Quality of Life Policies ...