EU-Ukraine bilateral meetings on consumer protection and healthcare start in Brussels

On Monday, 10 February, bilateral meetings between representatives of Ukraine and the European Commission began in Brussels, Belgium, as part of the official screening of the compliance of Ukrainian legislation with EU law under Chapter 28, Consumer and Health Protection, which is part of Cluster 2, Internal Market. Such meetings are part of the country’s accession negotiations with the European Union.

Deputy Minister of Economy of Ukraine Tetiana Berezhna and Deputy Minister of Health for European Integration Maryna Slobodnichenko will make presentations on consumer protection and healthcare, respectively.

In her opening remarks, Head of the Delegation, Deputy Prime Minister for European and Euro-Atlantic Integration and Minister of Justice of Ukraine Olha Stefanishyna stressed that consumer protection had always been a priority for the state.

“One of the first laws and regulations adopted in Ukraine after gaining independence was the Law on Consumer Protection, a key market regulation that is extremely necessary in Ukraine. This also applies to public health policy. In recent years, within the framework of the Association Agreement, we have implemented significant reforms to strengthen our regulatory framework for public health and consumer protection. We have improved market surveillance and strengthened consumer rights. The adaptation of our legislation to EU law has been and remains the basis of this process, even in the face of full-scale aggression,” the Deputy Prime Minister stressed.

She emphasised that these efforts on the part of Ukraine include harmonisation of consumer protection legislation with EU directives, ensuring a high level of consumer protection, transparency and a clear enforcement mechanism. Moreover, the main framework legislation was adopted after the start of full-scale aggression, and strong support was provided to the public health and healthcare system.

“We fully adopt EU legislation in the sections on consumer protection and healthcare, and ask to accelerate integration for access to the EU market in the field of pharmaceutical products, as well as to consider the possibility of including the pharmaceutical sector in the ACAA agreement once it is signed. And we ask to expand this framework to ensure Ukraine’s access to the EU market,” the Deputy Prime Minister said.

During the bilateral meetings under Chapter 28, which will take place from 10 to 12 February 2025, the Ukrainian delegation will present reports covering the following issues: general principles of EU and Ukrainian consumer policy; consumer protection; product safety; medicines; cosmetics; tobacco control; health inequalities; anti-corruption measures in the health sector and many others.

Participating from the Ukrainian side in offline and online formats are representatives of the Ministry of Economy, the Office for Financial Services Consumer Rights Protection, the Deposit Guarantee Fund, the Ministry for Communities and Territories Development, the State Service for Food Safety and Consumer Protection, the Ministry of Health, the State Service on Medicines and Drugs Control, the Ministry of Agrarian Policy and Food, the Government Office for Coordination of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration, the National Health Service, the Public Health Centre, the Coordination Centre for Mental Health under the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, and others.

Background

The consumer protection legislation covered by Chapter 28 deals with the safety of consumer goods and the protection of the economic interests of consumers in specific sectors. Member States need to transpose EU law into national law and establish independent administrative structures and enforcement authorities to enable effective market surveillance and enforcement. Adequate judicial and non-judicial dispute resolution mechanisms, consumer information, and the role of consumer organisations should also be ensured. In addition, this section covers specific mandatory rules in the healthcare sector.