The JACARDI consortium begins the new year with renewed energy and optimism, strengthened by significant public health announcements made in Brussels at the close of 2024. These developments validate JACARDI’s mission and reassure the experts involved that its Joint Action and pilot projects in 19 European countries are well-aligned with the priorities of the European Union.
Notable milestones include the EU Commission's endorsement of the Cardiovascular Health Plan, the newly appointed Commissioner for Health and Animal Safety’s strong focus on cardiovascular prevention and treatment, the Aerosol-Free Initiative, the European Parliament’s decision to create a standing committee on public health, and Poland’s commitment to prioritizing public health during its Presidency. Together, these advancements demonstrate that momentum is building for better prevention and treatment of non-communicable diseases (NCDs).
JA PreventNCD and JACARDI – Projects and priorities in parallel
Having Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan as a guiding framework for the Prevent initiative has filled a gap that JACARDI and the cardiovascular health (CVH) community had long faced. The recent adoption of Council Conclusions by the European Union and the commitment for a new CVH Plan marks a significant leap forward for cardiovascular health and for the future implementation of JACARDI’s outcomes.
With cardiovascular disease still the leading cause of death in the EU and globally — affecting over 60 million Europeans, causing more than 1.7 million deaths annually, and costing the EU economy approximately €282 billion per year — these Conclusions offer a timely, much-needed response.
JACARDI embraces these Conclusions, which align closely with its goals, methodologies, and actions, emphasizing the need for strengthening prevention, early detection, screening, management, and rehabilitation for CVD. It encourages Member States to expand screening programs, address social and environmental determinants of health, and improve access to patient-centered therapies.
This enhanced focus from the EU on tackling CVD’s immense health and economic burden is encouraging for JACARDI’s teams, serving as an indication that their work can have a real, lasting impact on improving public health across Europe. Health Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi’s commitment to translating these Council Conclusions into a comprehensive European cardiovascular health plan offers hope for real progress.
The Conclusions also call for increased funding and more coordinated cardiovascular health actions spanning primary, secondary, and tertiary care. This includes promoting evidence-based prevention measures, advancing innovative treatments, and leveraging digital health tools to enhance data integration and research. Moreover, targeted public health campaigns aim to raise health literacy and address shared risk factors — such as poor nutrition, tobacco use, and physical inactivity — which are common to both CVD and related conditions like cancer. These efforts, combined with measures to reduce air and noise pollution, represent a holistic EU approach to addressing the root causes of cardiovascular diseases.
Broad support and a hopeful perspective for cardiovascular health
The proposed plan has garnered strong backing from the broader health community: EUPHA and its partners have expressed their endorsement in a position paper published recently calling for a practical and impactful strategy. Moreover, JACARDI’s Stakeholder Board members unanimously expressed their full support for the CVH plan, to which JACARDI’s pilot actions can contribute valuable evidence and nuance in the future.
There is also reason for optimism, as the Council has encouraged Member States to adopt CVH measures based on the outcomes of Joint Actions, which provide both evidence and best practices. This serves as a further incentive for Prevent NCDs and JACARDI, ensuring that the results of these Joint Actions will be anticipated, visible, and sustainable.
Although CVH is in the forefront of the conversation these days, JACARDI tackles the dual challenges of cardiovascular disease and diabetes (DM) simultaneously. Since the interconnected nature of these conditions require a coordinated response, the pilots are designed to test and refine strategies to deliver solutions that not only improve individual outcomes but also strengthen public health systems across Europe.
Authors are Agnes Makai and Nora Strommer, members of the JACARDI communication and dissemination team.
For more information on the JACARDI project, please visit their official website.