EU Health Ministers Boost Preparations to Fight New Virus

EU Health Ministers Boost Preparations to Fight New Virus
European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides talks to journalists during a news conference following an EU Health Ministers meeting to discuss the spread of the illness COVID-19 at the Europa building in Brussels, on Feb. 13, 2020. Francisco Seco/AP Photo
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BRUSSELS—European Union health ministers agreed Thursday to boost preparations and organize a coordinated response to prevent the virus that emerged in China from further spreading across Europe.

At an emergency meeting in Brussels, officials from the bloc’s 27 nations said they need to plan more to avoid any possible shortages of medicine or protective equipment during the outbreak, which the World Health Organization has called a threat to global health.