European roadmap towards common lifting of coronavirus containment measures
On 15 April, the Commission, in cooperation with the President of the European Council, has put forward a European roadmap to phase-out the containment measures due to the coronavirus outbreak.
The necessary extraordinary measures taken by Member States and the EU are working. They have slowed down the spread of the virus and saved thousands of lives. However, these measures and the corresponding uncertainty come at a dramatic cost to people, society and the economy, and cannot last indefinitely.
“Heads of State or Government tasked us with a Roadmap to ensure a coordinated exit from the confinement measures. Today we deliver on this request. I want to make sure that this is not, it is not a signal that confinement, containment measures can be lifted as of now, but it intends to provide a frame for Member States' decisions. In general, we recommend a gradual approach. Every action should be continuously monitored,” underlined President von der Leyen when presenting the roadmap at the joint press conference with President of the European Council Charles Michel.
While recognising the specificities of each country, the proposed roadmap establishes three main sets of criteria to consider when assessing whether the time has come roll back the measures:
- Epidemiological criteria showing that the spread of the disease has significantly decreased and stabilised for a sustained period.
- Sufficient health system capacity, for example taking into account the occupation rate for intensive care units, the availability of health care workers and medical material.
- Appropriate monitoring capacity, including large-scale testing capacity to quickly detect and isolate infected individuals, as well as tracking and tracing capacity.
The proposed roadmap also includes recommendations that Member States should consider when planning to lift containment measures. Those include the need to lift measures in different steps, with sufficient time left between them to measure the impact; to progressively replace general measures by targeted ones; to lift internal border controls in a coordinated manner — just to mention a few.
While confinement measures are gradually lifted, there is a need to strategically plan the recovery, revitalising the economy and getting back on a path of sustainable growth. With this in mind, the Commission will develop a Recovery plan. President von der Leyen and President Michel will discuss with the heads of state and governments the key principles of a Recovery Plan and an outline of a reinforced Multiannual Financial Framework during their videoconference on 23 April.
Finally, as the virus knows no borders, it can only be defeated through international coordination and cooperation, to improve our pandemic preparedness. President von der Leyen will host an online pledging conference on 4 May, to accelerate work on diagnostics, treatments and the development of a vaccine.
“On the health side, the key element is to cooperate and to improve our pandemic preparedness. And this includes how to accelerate the work on diagnostics, on treatments and on the development of a vaccine. … To support this global initiative, funding is needed. And to this end, I decided to host an online pledging conference on 4 May. This will help address the immediate funding gaps to come up with innovative and equitable solutions. … And I hope that countries and organisations all over the world will respond to this call,” said President von der Leyen at the press conference.
Adding on the global dimension of the COVID-19 crisis, President of the European Council Charles Michel underlined the importance of a very strong partnership with Africa. He informed that European leaders together with African leaders supported the international call for an urgent debt moratorium and unprecedented health and economic aid packages.
Background
The roadmap has been developed in response to the call of the European Council of 26 March for a coordinated exit strategy. It takes into account the expertise of the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and the panel of scientific experts advising the Commission on the coronavirus, experience of Member States and guidance from the World Health Organization. Evidently, any such reflection is based on the scientific knowledge available today, and should be revised as further evidence appears.
More Information:
Coronavirus: European roadmap shows path towards common lifting of containment measures (press release of 15 April 2020)
Factsheet: A Joint European Roadmap towards lifting coronavirus containment measures