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Tanel Kiik Tervise- ja tööminister 30.11.2021 nr 10.1-13/1208-1 Sotsiaalministeerium Austatud härra minister Edastame Teile Euroopa Komisjoni voliniku Stella Kyriakidese 29.11.2021 kirja nr Ares(2021) 7337163 (COVID-19). Lugupidamisega Marten Kokk Esinduse asejuht Coreper I küsimustes Lisad: voliniku kiri 2 lk Tiiu Noobel +32 2227 4337 [email protected] Rue Guimard 11/13 1040 Brüssel Tel: +32 2 227 39 10 [email protected] https://eu.mfa.ee/et/ Ref. Ares(2021)7337163 - 29/11/2021 European Commission STELLA KYRIAKIDES Rue de la Loi, 200 MEMBER OF THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION B-1049 Brussels-Ber! 10/380 HEALTH AND FOOD SAFETY stella.kyriakidesfeec.europa.eu Brasseis, 29 November 2021 Dear Minister Kiik, chou lûtoel i Our cooperation, coordination and solidarity on COVID-19 management has carried us forward during the past almost two years of this crisis and I would like to thank you all for this. It’s important, as I am sure we all agree, that these principles guide us forward in the immediate future as we enter what appears to be a new phase of this pandemic. After a period of stability largely provided by the rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, the use of the EU Digital COVID Certificate and the favourable weather, we are faced, once again, with a very challenging and worrying epidemiological situation. Already faced with a challenging winter due to the high transmissibility of the Delta variant, a very high immunity gap and the relaxation of non-pharmaceutical interventions and personal behaviours, we may now experience further or additional pressures because of the appearance of the Omicron variant. I therefore write to encourage you and your fellow Health Ministers to do the utmost to continue increasing the vaccination rate across all eligible groups. The more we vaccinate, the higher the benefits of vaccination will be. We now have sufficient evidence that demonstrates the decline in the effectiveness of vaccines over time, in particular regarding the protection against infection and transmission. While vaccine effectiveness against severe disease and hospitalisation remains high, taking into account the recent recommendations from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, I strongly believe that a common EU approach to proceed with the rapid administration of boosters will be the most effective way forward, and is also crucial for building trust in vaccination. This requires immediate action and I encourage you to provide boosters for everyone eligible as a matter of urgency, to increase protection against infection and sustain transmission control. Mr Tanel Kiik Minister for Social Affairs Estonia While we continue to vaccinate and boost as much and as quickly as possible, we must in parallel maintain or introduce non-pharmaceutical interventions. These have proven effective in the past and will do so again, regardless of which variant is circulating. We must, as always, ensure the measures are proportionate but effective. The ECDC stands ready to provide advice and support. The identification of the Omicron variant shows how essential genomic sequencing is. It alerts us of concerning variants and allows us to track their evolution. You have already made substantial efforts to increase the sequencing rate and these must be strengthened even further. Certain Member States lag behind considerably in terms of this crucial dimension. As always, we remain ready to assist, both financially and technically through the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA). As the number of cases increases and as we detect further cases due to this new variant, I can only encourage you to ramp up testing capacity (both PCR and rapid antigen tests) quickly and decisively. The monitoring of wastewater has also proven to be an effective tool providing key insights, and needs to be leveraged in the diagnostic effort. Testing must be accompanied by robust contact tracing and the swift isolation of cases when warranted. Some Member States are already using the European digital Passenger Locator Form, which is a suitable mechanism to swiftly transfer relevant information of passengers across borders. It goes without saying that, the more Member States make use of this indispensable tool, the more effective it will be. We have worked together on the EU Strategy for COVID-19 therapeutics with great success. As more and more promising treatments become available, I believe that our experience on the procurement of vaccines should be our guide. Common joint European procurement of therapeutics is the best way forward. This will ensure better conditions and timely and equal access for all Europeans. I call on you to join the planned EU Joint Procurements in this area without delay. In addition, we will look into the possibility of purchasing available therapeutics as part of the Joint Procurement to further support access when and where needed. Finally, a year ago, we put forward the European Health Union proposals to strengthen our common framework for preparedness and response to health threats. Good progress has been made in the reinforcement of the two agencies, ECDC and EMA. However, it is now indispensable that we push forward and conclude the negotiations of the Cross Border Health Threats Regulation and the HERA Crisis Regulation. The full operationalisation of HERA, empowered with crisis powers, would have given us an even stronger footing to coordinate response actions on the new Omicron variant, as well as any other variants of interest or concern in the future. I trust you will agree that we must conclude the negotiations on this essential initiative as soon as possible. Yours Sincerely, ____________________________________________________ ------------------------------------------------- Tiiu Noobel Subject: FW: URGENT Letter from EU Commissioner Stella Kyriakides to Minister of Social Affairs, Mr Tanel Kiik, Attachments: EE_Cover letter to Perm Rep.docx.pdf; Registered Letter_EE.pdf From: Rahel Pütsep <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2021 9:30 AM To: Tiiu Noobel <[email protected]> Subject: FW: URGENT Letter from EU Commissioner Stella Kyriakides to Minister of Social Affairs, Mr Tanel Kiik, From: CASSAR Christian <[email protected]> Sent: Monday, November 29, 2021 7:37 PM To: Marten Kokk <[email protected]> Cc: Esindus EL juures üldaadress <[email protected]>; Agne Nettan-Sepp <[email protected]> Subject: URGENT Letter from EU Commissioner Stella Kyriakides to Minister of Social Affairs, Mr Tanel Kiik, Your Excellency, Please find attached letter from Ms Stella Kyriakides, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety addressed to Mr Tanel Kiik, Minister of Social Affairs concerning, reinforcing the coordinated EU management of the COVID19 pandemic. Kind Regards Christian Cassar Assistant European Commission Cabinet of Commissioner Stella Kyriakides Health and Food Safety Rue de la Loi 200, BERL 10/390 B-1049 Brussels/Belgium Telephone: +32 2 29 88690 Email: [email protected] 1