Brussels hosts the Euronews Health Summit 2026, bringing together top EU health officials, medical experts, and technology leaders to confront pressing challenges in healthcare.
European Commissioner for Health Olivér Várhelyi opened the summit with a keynote on the bloc’s health priorities. Discussions centered on four key themes: rare kidney disease, medical sovereignty, AI in healthcare, and the EU’s role in public health policy.
A panel on rare kidney disease featured patient advocates and clinicians, including Daniel Gallego and Professor Michel Jadoul. Later, EU officials and industry leaders debated medical supply chain independence with input from DG HERA and Medicines for Europe.
Ricardo Baptista Leite of HealthAI addressed ethical AI deployment in medicine, followed by a high-level discussion on whether AI has overstepped boundaries in clinical settings. Participants included Max Planck Institute’s Christian F. Doeller and Philips executive Jan-Willem Scheijgrond.
The day concluded with a debate on expanding the EU’s health mandate, moderated by Maia De La Baume, featuring MEPs Peter Agius and Vytenis Andriukaitis, alongside public health leaders.
Czech Health Minister Adam Vojtěch also discussed national and international health strategy with Euronews journalist Marta Iraola. The summit ended with networking at 6:00 PM and was streamed live globally.