EC votes for "Europe for Patients"

The European Parliament has voted in favor of three major health policy initiatives: patients rights in cross-border health care; improving  patient safety; and a European Union strategy on rare diseases  (Marketletters passim). The latter aims to improve the recognition of  rare, or "orphan," diseases which affect up to 6% of the total EU  population, or 29 million to 36 million people, and pool expertise,  experience and research to maximize the effective use of resources to  the benefit of all patients with these conditions. It also calls for  wider international collaboration in this area.