On 24 February 2026, the European Lung Health Group (ELHG), within the framework of the #KeepBreathing campaign, brought together policymakers, EU institutions, patient representatives, healthcare professionals, researchers and civil society organisations in Brussels for the second High-level Forum on Lung Health.
The Forum, “Promoting prevention with improved lung health”, focused on how Europe can better prevent, diagnose and treat respiratory diseases through a more coordinated policy response.
Respiratory diseases remain one of Europe’s biggest health challenges
Speakers underlined the scale of the challenge. Lung diseases are responsible for 1 in 8 deaths in the EU, making them the third most common cause of death, even though many are preventable.
Behind these figures are patients and families living with breathlessness, delayed diagnosis, unequal access to care and the daily impact of diseases that often remain underestimated.
Discussions showed that lung health is already touched by many EU policy areas, from air quality and tobacco control to research, medicines, data, primary care and health inequalities. But action remains fragmented. Participants agreed that Europe needs a clearer shared vision, stronger implementation of existing laws and a dedicated European Lung Health Plan to connect prevention, early diagnosis, treatment access and investment.
Prevention starts with the healthy air
Prevention was at the centre of the debate. Speakers stressed that clean air, healthier homes, stronger tobacco and nicotine control, and action on environmental risks are not separate from health policy. They are essential to protecting lung health across the life course, especially for children and people already living with respiratory disease.
Participants also highlighted the need to look beyond healthcare alone. Policies on housing, transport, energy, workplaces and urban environments all shape respiratory health outcomes. A future European Lung Health Plan should therefore support a health-in-all-policies approach, making lung health part of the decisions that affect people’s daily lives.
Early diagnosis and access to care remain uneven
The Forum also highlighted the importance of primary care. Many people with asthma, COPD or other respiratory symptoms first seek help through primary care, yet good-quality diagnosis and long-term management are still not available equally across Europe.
Better reimbursement, wider use of spirometry, trained healthcare teams and stronger links with specialist care were presented as key steps to improve patient pathways. Speakers also stressed that access to effective treatment remains uneven, with many patients still facing delays before receiving the right diagnosis and care.
EU action has started, but a dedicated Plan is still missing
Participants pointed to existing EU initiatives supporting lung health, including JARED, LungHealth4Life, SOLACE and the European Lung Foundation’s Healthy Lungs for Life campaign. These projects show that joint action is already happening across prevention, screening, awareness and care.
But speakers were clear that projects alone are not enough. Europe needs sustained policy targets, adequate funding and long-term political commitment to match the burden of respiratory diseases.
The World Health Assembly resolution on lung health, adopted in 2025, was seen as an important political moment. It gives countries a global framework for action, but Europe still lacks a dedicated plan to translate this momentum into coordinated EU and national measures.
Lung health needs the same political ambition as cancer and heart health
Speakers reflected on lessons from Europe’s Beating Cancer Plan and the EU Safe Heart Plan, noting that lung health now needs the same level of political attention.
A future European Lung Health Plan should cover chronic and infectious respiratory diseases, strengthen prevention, improve diagnosis and care, address inequalities, support innovation and ensure that lung health is considered across the policies that shape people’s lives.
A shared call to help Europe #KeepBreathing
The message from the Forum was clear: Europe has started to act on lung health, but the response does not yet match the burden.
Through Breathe Vision for 2030 and the #KeepBreathing campaign, ELHG will continue working with partners to build the evidence, political will and coalition needed for a stronger European approach.
Everyone in Europe deserves the chance to breathe cleaner air, receive timely diagnosis and access the care they need. A dedicated European Lung Health Plan would be a major step towards making that a reality.
Read the full High Level Forum on Lung Health – Event Report 2026.
Organised by EFA on behalf of the European Lung Health Group. To get involved or contribute to a reflection paper on a future European Lung Health Plan, visit breathevision.eu or contact policy@efanet.org.