“Health, I think, is still the biggest challenge in front of us for Europe, but also for the part of the world we are living in,” European Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi said at the Euronews Health Summit in Brussels on Tuesday.
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A rising number of non-communicable diseases, shortages of healthcare workers, and a growing aging population are shaping the European health landscape.
The European healthcare model is distinct, Várhelyi said.
“It is unique, and we should preserve it because it is not only a value, but it makes us different and makes us much, much more reliable for our societies than anywhere else in the world,” he added.
“We must face the reality that the system is under pressure and we just cannot take it for granted that it will stay with us tomorrow as well,” Várhelyi said.
In response, the European Union has recently presented multiple reforms aimed at strengthening the bloc and boosting resilience and crisis response.
“The potential is huge for our economy and competitiveness, but most importantly, for our health care system as well,” Várhelyi noted.
The Commissioner took office in 2024 and has since presented some of the biggest pieces of legislation currently governing European health.
Driven by spread medicine shortages and dependencies in the drug supply chain, the European Union agreed in December 2025 on a revamp of the bloc’s pharmaceutical rules.
“This sector is a major contributor to the EU’s economy,” Várhelyi said.
He noted the pharmaceutical industry makes up five percent of value added to the economy from all manufacturing, and it represents almost 11 percent of EU exports.
“Our reform provides a much-needed update, which should make it ready for the future. It is designed to transform our regulatory system so that it can fully support groundbreaking therapies, especially for patients who face unmet medical needs,” he added.
Following a similar simplification line, which was recently presented EU Biotech Act aims to make it easier to bring products from the laboratory to the factory and the market.
The Health Commissioner explained that the new EU Biotech Act, together with the update on the medical devices regulation, has simplification in their core.
All these new initiatives will put the European health industry at the forefront of the global innovation race and will deliver to the citizens the best health technologies, Varhelyi noted.
“This is the only way to save the unique European healthcare model,” he said.
According to him, the current rules create unnecessary costs, bottlenecks, uncertainty for companies, and major delays for patients.
“By simplifying what should be simplified, implementing and enforcing, and updating our rules, we move further towards the future we want. A future where innovation thrives, and ideas are turned into treatments much faster,” Várhelyi said.