During the meeting of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) in the EP in Brussels, MEPs call for measures to address vaccine “hesitancy” in the EU, where growing numbers of people are choosing to delay or refuse vaccines. Recent data from EU member states show a significant drop in the use of vaccines. The results are: 55 in favour, 1 against and 3 abstentions. Statements by Marco AFFRONTE (Greens/EFA, IT), Elena GENTILE (S&D, IT) and Renate SOMMER (EPP, DE), co-Rapporteurs.

Brussels

meeting

vote

Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

healthcare safety (T)

AFFRONTE, Marco (Greens/EFA, IT)

SOMMER, Renate (EPP, DE)

GENTILE, Elena (S&D, IT)

Vaccine hesitancy and drop in vaccination rates in Europe: extracts from the vote, statements by co-Rapporteurs and illustrative shots

Atmosphere shots at the ENVI EP Committee voting session (3 shots)

Opening of the vote by the Chair of ENVI Committee

Final vote, the report is adopted by 55 votes in favour, 1 against and 3 abstentions.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Marco AFFRONTE (Greens/EFA, IT), co-Rapporteur, We are worried about the increasing apprehension towards vaccines and we want to make pressure to obtain that families are informed. The vaccination is a fundamental instrument for prevent several diseases and epidemics. We need vaccines but we also need a very good information to reassure families and fight fake news.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Marco AFFRONTE (Greens/EFA, IT), co-Rapporteur, In Italy we stop the phenomenon with the obliged vaccination but we do not want to arrive there, because this measure has to be an extrema ratio. We need more information, more education and to provide true news, based on scientific facts.

SOUNDBITE (Italian), Elena GENTILE (S&amp;D, IT), co-Rapporteur, Our aim is to promote information and awareness policies. Too many parents elude vaccinations, several infective diseases are re-emerging. We are obliged to a new strategy for convince Member States to submit public opinion to a sort of stress.

SOUNDBITE (English), Renate SOMMER (EPP, DE), co-Rapporteur, We have a growing problem all over Europe, that is vaccine hesitancy. More and more people decide not to be vaccinated or not to allow their children to be vaccinated. It leads already to the effect that we have new outbreaks of infectious diseases, such as measles.

SOUNDBITE (English), Renate SOMMER (EPP, DE), co-Rapporteur, We had, since beginning of 2016, 50 deaths caused by the measles and that is not necessary and the number of measles infections tripled from 2016 to one year later, up to 15 000 all over the Europe. And that is just one example of an infectious disease and we think we should go against that.

SOUNDBITE (English), Renate SOMMER (EPP, DE), co-Rapporteur, Our vaccines are absolutely safe, there is a lot misinformation going around that vaccines make people ill, but that is of course nonsense, and it is dangerous nonsense. And then we should tell those parents that they endanger their lives, the lives of their children or their health. Because some infectious diseases leave people back with serious handicaps for the rest of their lives.

Illustrative shots on someone taking a vaccine.