COVID-19: EMA meetings with delegates and experts will be held virtually until end April 2020

11 March 2020

As a precautionary measure, all meetings of EMA committees and working parties will be held virtually until the end of April 2020. In addition, stakeholder events hosted by EMA which were planned to take place at the Agency’s premises in Amsterdam in March and April will either be held virtually or postponed until later in the year. Participants of these meetings will be informed directly about this decision.

This measure aims to limit international travel and the number of visitors coming to EMA’s offices, in order to reduce the risk of an infection with the novel coronavirus for delegates, visitors and staff.

EMA has also initiated its Business Continuity Plan to provide a clear structure for the Agency’s management of the COVID-19 crisis. The Agency’s overarching goal is to ensure that the assessment and monitoring of medicines are not disrupted and that patients in Europe continue to have access to high quality, safe and effective treatments during the COVID-19 outbreak.

EMA’s core activities are not impacted by these measures and the Agency will ensure that the virtual meetings will be conducted in the most efficient way. Continued coordination with the EU regulatory network and other European institutions is essential to manage the COVID-19 crisis. The European Commission's Directorate-General for Health and Food Safety, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) and EMA will have videoconferences three times per week to share information and expertise as efficiently as possible.

EMA’s plans are being continually reviewed. The dedicated webpage on COVID-19 is updated as the situation develops.