Through an initiative led by GAMIAN and the European Parliaments MEP Alliance for Mental Health, EACLIPT has co-signed a call to the European Commission to emphasise the need for better mental health care. Here's the statement:
The supporters of the MEP Alliance for Mental Health, the supporters of the European Parliament Coalition for Mental Health and Wellbeing and concerned stakeholders call on the European Commission to designate 2023 as the European Year for Mental Health.
Making mental health everybody's businesss
Mental ill health affects more than one in six people across the European Union in any given year, with atotal cost of over EUR 600 billion - or more than 4% of GDP - across the 28 EU countries. (1) It can affect persons of any age and in a variety of forms and has costs and consequences that impactindividuals, families and carers, health and social systems, employers, communities and the economy. Poor mental health is consistently associated with unemployment, social and economic inequality, low income or standard of living, poor physical health challenging life events, poor quality of life and stigma. Mental health conditions are the fastest growing current health burden: long-term mental healthproblems are responsible for 1/3 of all disabiltiies, for 15% of inpatient costs and for a quarter of all medicinecosts.
Now is the time to take action!
Given the above, mental health should be a policy priority. However, mental health and related policieshave been accorded relatively low priority across the EU. The EU-level itself is no longer taking specific initiatives on mental health. NOW is the time to take action: the COVID-19 pandemic has truly put the spotlight on mental health and its importance. (2) Rates of anxiety, depression and loneliness and addiction, already increasing as a consequence of the pandemic and related measures taken, will only increase further as a result of the predicted economic and employment uncertainty. Moreover, the pandemic has revealed systemic problems in the way society addresses and supports mental health, as services have not been able to keep up with growing demand.
These issues are prominent at this point - and will become even more so in a post-COVID future, posing further challenges. We recognise the limited remit in the field of mental health at EU level. However, the EU shouldmake use of the tools that it does have at its disposal; designating a European Year is one of thosetools. The undersigned would welcome the opportunity to discuss this initiative further with theEuropean Commission. (1) Health at a Glance report 2018 (2) Health at a Glance report 2020. Please endorse the statement here.
Endorsing Members of the European Parliament
Alex Agius Saliba MEP
Estrella Dura Ferrandis MEP
Radka Maxova MEP Maria Walsh MEP
Tomas Zdechovsky MEP
Alvina Alametsa MEP
Brando Benifei MEP
Cristian Silviu Busoi MEP
Tudor Ciuhodaru MEP
Katalin Cseh MEP
Josianne Cutajar MEP
Sylvie Guillaume MEP
Jaroslaw Duda MEP Lucia Duris Nicholsonova MEP
Cyrus Engerer MEP
Soraya Rodriguez MEP
Sara Cerdas MEP Tilly Metz MEP Marco Campomenosi MEP
Francesca Donato MEP
Tanja Fajon MEP Gianna Gancia MEP
Seán Kelly MEP
Kateřina Konečná MEP Katrin Langensiepen MEP
Susana Solis Perez MEP
Sylwia Spurek MEP
Pernille Weiss MEP
Rosa Estaras Ferragut MEP
Juozas Olekas MEP
Heidi Hautala MEP
Stelios Kympouropoulos MEP
Eva Maydell MEP Petri Sarvamaa MEP
Aldo Patriciello MEP
Sirpa Pietikainen MEP
CarolineRoose MEP
Tomislav Sokol MEP
Hermann Tertsch MEP
Romana Tomc MEP
Endorsing individuals and organisations
Comments