Europe has an opportunity to address avoidable cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and ease the burden of chronic and infectious diseases on national health systems. However, this requires a shift in EU policy from late-stage treatment to earlier detection and timely prevention of CVD. Health innovation now enables earlier identification of individuals at risk of developing CVD, making it possible to implement preventive interventions that slow or prevent disease progression, while strengthening health system resilience. Immunization is becoming a key component of CVD prevention, helping reduce the risk of major cardiac events triggered by respiratory infections.
The EU’s Safe Hearts Plan and the European Parliament’s report on the EU strategy show the political ambition to change the outlook of cardiovascular health. But ambition is not enough. It must be matched with funding and clear commitments in the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MMF) and anchored in the two upcoming Council recommendations on health checks and on immunization against respiratory infections, both of which will become core instruments of cardiovascular prevention policy.
Building on existing legacy of prevention to tackle the disease burden
Respiratory infections such as influenza, Covid-19 and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) are well-established drivers of CVD and seasonal hospital strain. Influenza vaccination alone can reduce major adverse cardiovascular events by over one-third. Yet, across the EU a mismatch persists: high burden and low vaccination coverage rates. Covid-19 vaccination rates in many members states have fallen to around 10 percent. Influenza vaccination coverage remains below the World Health Organization and EU targets and is on the decline across Europe. Programs for RSV are only just getting started. The result is predictable: avoidable exacerbations, preventable admissions and winter hospitalization peaks that crowd out other care. Most of these can be tackled through vaccination, which is recognized by the European Society of Cardiology as a foundational pillar of CVD prevention.
Health innovation now enables earlier identification of individuals at risk of developing CVD, making it possible to implement preventive interventions that slow or prevent disease progression.
The 2009 Council recommendation on influenza set a 75 percent target for older adults. Where countries meet it, hospital pressure drops, demonstrating the value of EU policy tools. Europe should replicate that model again to directly advance cardiovascular health. For example, through the upcoming Council recommendation on immunization against respiratory infections, updating and expanding EU vaccination targets for influenza, and re-establishing momentum on Covid-19. Clear ambitions must also be set for RSV while providing complementary goals for pneumococcal and shingles vaccination for at-risk groups. This is the single biggest, fastest lever to reduce winter hospitalizations and directly advance cardiovascular health.
The sunrise of a new prevention age in Europe
Prevention extends beyond vaccination. Early detection can transform the course of chronic and autoimmune diseases associated with increased CVD risk. Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is a clear example. Up to 80 percent of people with T1D are still diagnosed with diabetic ketoacidosis, a life-threatening complication. By the time symptoms appear, significant damage has occurred. Screening for T1D related autoantibodies makes it possible to detect the disease months to years before symptoms occur, reducing misdiagnosis, hospitalizations and cost, while enabling structured monitoring and coordinated care.
Momentum for early T1D detection is building across Europe, driven by scientific advances and growing advocacy from patient and clinical communities. Several member states are testing screening approaches, including under the EU-funded EDENT1FI initiative, which is generating real-world evidence on feasibility, uptake and socioeconomic benefits. The challenge now is scaling beyond pilots. EU coordination can support the integration of early detection into national prevention strategies, enable sustainable implementation and avoid fragmentation.
Screening for T1D related autoantibodies makes it possible to detect the disease months to years before symptoms occur.
Chronic respiratory diseases are also often underrecognized contributing factors to CVD. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with frequent exacerbations is a common CVD comorbidity, and uncontrolled asthma increases CVD risk. Including these in health checks will strengthen integrated prevention protocols, combining spirometry for at-risk adults during cardiovascular checks with e-referrals to pulmonologists, alongside integrated cardiovascular risk management. The result: early identification of high-risk patients who have underdiagnosed COPD and asthma, resulting in early referral to a pulmonologist, ensured continuity of care and more precise targeting of CVD.
Delivering this broader prevention model requires system readiness. In practice, this means building laboratory and logistics capacity, ensuring fair access to screening, strengthening data infrastructure for recall, follow-up and outcome tracking, workforce preparation and raising public awareness. The forthcoming Council recommendation on health checks can be the framework that helps members states integrate earlier detection of at-risk populations, covering both chronic respiratory diseases and T1D. Done well, health checks become a gateway to proportionate, evidence-based risk identification and clearer care pathways.
Done well, health checks become a gateway to proportionate, evidence-based risk identification and clearer care pathways.
Europe should also link prevention policy to strategic capability by strengthening EU-level capacity for surveillance and data sharing, forecasting and strain selection, alongside coordinated procurement and manufacturing resilience. The goal is pragmatic: faster, more independent decision-making in a crisis and better overall alignment.
Taken together, there is a coherent, actionable agenda for the EU to take forward and support through dedicated funding:
Scale early detection and screening as part of CVD prevention: Use the Council recommendation on health checks to integrate screening for chronic respiratory diseases and T1D autoantibody screening, and embed structured follow up into routine pathways, with safeguards for equity and quality.
Elevate respiratory infection vaccinations as a key lever for cardiovascular health: In the Council recommendation on immunization against respiratory infections, update and expand EU vaccination targets for major respiratory infections and embed vaccination into cardiovascular prevention strategies, particularly for at-risk populations.
Link prevention to chronic disease outcomes and measure it: Integrate prevention into cardiovascular and respiratory strategies, supported by clear, transparent metrics to track uptake, outcomes and system impact.
If Europe acts on these levers, the results will be tangible, with fewer infections, exacerbations and admissions, as well as a measurable reduction in cardiovascular events and comorbidities linked to respiratory infections, chronic respiratory diseases and T1D.
The Safe Hearts Plan provides the political direction. The Council recommendations can offer the practical tools. The MFF can now provide the investment to scale what works.
Disclaimer
POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT
The sponsor is Sanofi Winthrop Industrie (SWI).
The entity ultimately controlling the sponsor is Sanofi Winthrop Industrie (SWI).
This political advertisement promotes EU-level measures on prevention, screening and vaccination to address cardiovascular disease, thereby seeking to influence EU public policy and falling within the scope of the TTPA.
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Source:
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