Covid-19 is causing panic across Europe, while anti-epidemic measures have not been proven effective.

Health ministers of the European Union (EU) on 6 March held an emergency meeting in Brussels, Belgium, to discuss how to respond to Covid-19, as the number of nCoV infections in the EU has increased by more than 5,500 in more than two. months since the outbreak in China.

Observers believe that anti-epidemic measures in Europe so far have not really been effective. A series of questions about the continent's readiness to respond to the epidemic has been raised.

Czech Health Minister Adam Vojtech said the shortage of masks, protective equipment and disinfectants was a "real concern" issue. He called on the European Commission (EC) to speed up the procurement of necessary equipment and supplies, which the EC said would be done two weeks ago.

Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for Internal Market, issued a statement last week requesting member states to provide an assessment of the impact of the disease on the supply chain once a month.

Europe could also face a shortage of drugs because a large number of pharmaceutical products are imported from China and India, John Ryan, EC's Public Health Director, warned on March 5, less than 24. hours after an EU official in Brussels positive for nCoV.

Many European countries actually fell into a shortage of drugs before the outbreak, especially respiratory medicine, according to a report from the European Pharmaceutical Association (PGEU).

Although the EU is trying to overcome the disease, the virus has profoundly affected the daily activities of the region. A meeting between EU ambassadors was canceled yesterday after it emerged that Croatia representatives had contacted a nCoV-infected person.

According to experts, if the EU is not fully prepared before the epidemic, this is not entirely the bloc's fault. Member states are solely responsible for their own health policy and borders. But officials in Brussels warn EU countries are not sharing enough information with each other.

European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Stella Kyriakides urged members of the bloc to "share information with the EU and with each other on the measures that have been taken and plan their implementation in their countries".

"We will be better protected if we work together," she stressed.

Medical screening measures are also not consistent in Europe. Aviation experts say a number of countries have requested to announce the health of returning passengers from areas of severe outbreaks such as China or Italy.

One of the reasons many European countries do not restrict travel to the countries most affected by the epidemic is due to international legal regulations on how countries respond to the disease, Dr. Osman said. Dar, a public health expert at the Chatham House Research Institute, UK.

Called the International Health Regulations (IHR), the legal framework aims to encourage countries to report new risks to international bodies such as the World Health Organization (WHO), which subsequently can give coordinated responses.

"Countries that report early will be protected from travel and trade restrictions as well as other socio-economic impacts," Dar said.

He also added that the comparison of European health systems with other countries and regions is not fair. "China has responded to the epidemic with remarkable speed and they are the only country that can do that on such a scale," he said.

Europe's robust public health system helps countries in the region better deal with risks than elsewhere, but the nCoV has really kept Europe and the world at risk.

"We need to limit the spread of nCoV because the global health system is not ready," said Dr. Michael Ryan, executive director of the WHO Emergency Program.

This is especially true in Italy, where Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte has admitted a hospital in the northern town of Codogno has dealt with inconsistent with the region's first nCoV infection, contributing to the spread of the virus. Last week, Italian health authorities warned hospitals struggling with an "overcrowding crisis".

Italy has taken a number of stringent measures to prevent viruses, including blockade of towns in the north and school closures across the country.

Many other European countries are slowly following. France has banned the gathering of more than 5,000 people and amid rising numbers of infections, the British government also announced an action plan on March 3.