DG SANTE cannot be indifferent to such changes. The pandemic catapulted this Directorate General to the forefront of the action. In all policy areas, DG SANTE staff has been put to the test, sometimes showing that the very structure had outlived its original purpose. This is why DG SANTE is today giving itself a new organisation that is adapted to the challenging times in which we live.   

The Green Deal and the Health Union are the two tenets of such new organisation and elements of these two broad policy areas populate each and every part of the structure. A brand-new One Health Directorate, featuring prominently also Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR), is a clear indication that the change is profound and goes beyond simple form.    

Of course, the new structure aims at responding to President von der Leyen’s headline ambitions such as the green and the digital transitions. It also reflects the Health Union, including the European Health Data Space – both major achievements in the post-COVID legislative landscape that also covers the largest health budget under EU4Health. As of 1st October, the new DG SANTE will better serve these and many other priorities that go under the broad label of “Farm to Fork Strategy”, with deliverables that stretch from the Sustainable Use of Pesticides to future proposals on New Genomic Techniques, Animal Welfare, Food Information to Consumers or new EU food waste reduction targets.    

Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan, the revision of the legislation on blood, tissues and cells, as well as the Pharmaceutical Strategy with vital proposals for Antimicrobial Resistance, will also be huge building sites of the new DG SANTE. The Directorate-General will steadfastly pursue the huge implementation work in the policy areas under its remit, proudly living up to its recognised high standards. Finally, a much streamlined structure of supportive horizontal tasks will ensure that we remain effective and efficient at all times and respect the principles of Better Regulation.        

We have entered the age of pandemics, confronted anti-microbial resistance, seen how climate change and environmental degradation increase the risk of infectious diseases, recognised the increasing burden of non-communicable disease, and are sadly witnessing in Ukraine the geopolitical dimension that health can take. We need to respond to these new realities. Our new organisation will help us deliver on a new Global Health Strategy as well as on the negotiations of a Pandemic Agreement. We know that for a fully successful agenda, the international dimension is vital and will require the promotion of our health and food safety standards in both our bilateral relations and in multilateral fora.    

COVID19 was a bitter lesson. I would like to seize this opportunity to pay tribute to the sacrifice of health workers that went as far as to give their lives for us. In our own DG, I am very proud of my colleagues’ work that has amply proven our mettle and dedication in protecting EU citizens. It is my firm belief that the new DG SANTE will help us serve you better. This is definitely what will give meaning and sense to this new organisation.   

Sandra Gallina, Director General, DG SANTE 

For information about DG SANTE’s new organigramme, please visit: https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/default/files/organisation_charts/organisation-chart-dg-sante_en.pdf