Public health: Programme of Community action 1999-2003 on pollution-related diseases

OBJECTIVE: the purpose of the proposal is to establish a programme on diseases caused, provoked or aggravated by environmental pollution, for the period from 01.01.1999 to 31.12.2003. The programme aims to contribute towards ensuring a high level of human health protection in relation to these diseases by improving knowledge and understanding of the associated health risks and the way to tackle some of them (especially asthma and allergies). SUBSTANCE: the following actions are eligible under the programme: 1) Actions to improve information on pollution-related diseases (better understanding of the role of pollutants in the causation or aggravation of diseases): .identification of diseases in which pollutants play a role; comparison of prevalence and/or incidence; examination of quality of existing data and identification of any gaps in knowledge; studying the toxicology of pollutants; comparison of data and definition of criteria used, including informing the public, .improving the comparability of data used in preventive actions by means of exchanges of information; 2) Actions concerned with risk perception with respect to pollution-related diseases: .support for actions aimed at achieving better public understanding of risks, their assessment and management; promoting work on the public perceptions of pollution-related risks to health, .promoting actions concerning methods of increasing the level of knowledge of the general public and opinion-formers about pollution-related risks; 3) Actions concerned with respiratory diseases and allergies (support for activities aimed at reducing the prevalence and/or incidence of these diseases): .improving the provision of information to the general public and to specific groups on these diseases and the agents that play a role in them; contributing to the development of ways of improving the coordination of information campaigns; contributing to the efforts of self-help or support groups active in the field of respiratory diseases and allergies, .contributing to the comparison of various education and training initiatives used to combat these diseases, with a view to promoting best practice; reviewing the effectiveness of the preventive measures taken. Implementation: the Commission is to implement the programme in close cooperation with Member States. It will cooperate with institutions active in the field in question. It will be assisted by an advisory committee consisting of representatives of the Member States; Consistency and complementarity: the programme must be implemented so as to complement other relevant Community actions and to be consistent with them; International cooperation: the programme is open for participation by the associated countries of Central Europe and Cyprus and Malta. Cooperation with third countries and international organizations with a public health remit is also to be sought; Monitoring and assessment: the Commission is responsible for monitoring and assessing the programme continuously. It is to submit an evaluation report to Parliament and the Council during the 3rd year of operation. A final report will also be submitted to Parliament and the Council at the end of the programme; Budget: ECU 1.3 m for the first year (1999) (the financial framework for the four subsequent years will be decided after the adoption of the next financial perspective).�