On 3 October, European Alzheimer’s Alliance (EAA) Co-Chair, Hilde Vautmans MEP (Renew, Belgium), conducted an interview with news outlet Euractiv, in which she called for a greater focus on dementia as a policy issue at an EU level and dedicated funding for research and health programmes for the condition. MEP Vautmans noted the uneven situation in Member States in relation to dementia policies, including different stages of developing and implementing national dementia plans. She also highlighted that carers and the health and social care professionals must be given greater focus within such work.
To address different strands of dementia policy across Europe, she proposed that a future European Dementia Plan should be based on six pillars:
• Prevention
• Early detection and diagnosis
• Care and support
• Research and innovation
• A clear regulatory and access framework
• Governance and financing.
The full interview with MEP Vautmans and Euractiv is available at: https://www.euractiv.com/news/treat-dementia-with-the-same-ambition-as-cancer-says-mep-vautmans/