Public health: prevention of AIDS and other communicable diseases, Community action programme 1996-2000

In its common position, the Council made various amendments to the presentation and general structure of the programme, as well as adding more specific amendments concerning, in particular: - the establishment of the programme: the general objective of the programme was clarified. It was specifically aimed at helping to reduce mortality and morbidity due to STDs together with the risk of infection by AIDS by encouraging cooperation between Member States, supporting their actions and promoting the coordination of their prevention policies and programmes. The Council also amended the entire structure of the annexes and provided for four main areas of action (rather than the two-fold structure proposed by the Commission: the first concerning AIDS and STDs, the second setting out Community actions for certain STDs): . surveillance and monitoring of communicable diseases, . combating transmission, . information, education and training, . support for persons with AIDS and combating discrimination. It also withdrew all the initiatives concerning children and young people; - implementation: the Council stipulated that the programme would be implemented from 1 January 1996 to 31 December 2000. It defined more clearly the respective roles and contributions of the various actors participating in the implementation of the programme (particularly the Member States); - comitology: it provided for more active participation of the Member States in certain important decisions concerning the programme by establishing a mixed procedure: a management committee procedure for the important decisions and an advisory committee for other decisions (in accordance with the interinstitutional "modus vivendi"); - the programme's budget and transparency: the Council set out the scope of the financial support for the programme and strengthened transparency through regular information on the financial assistance granted under the programme. It also accepted the allocations for the programme set out in the amended proposal (ECU 49.6 million); - international cooperation: the EP's amendments concerning the participation of the associated CEECs and Cyprus and Malta were incorporated in the text; - with regard to monitoring and evaluation, the Council provided for fewer regular reports than had been proposed by the Commission or the EP but did not do away with the interim and final reports to be submitted to these institutions. �