EC debuts HERA Incubator to anticipate coronavirus variants

To prepare Europe for an increased threat of coronavirus variants, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, has announced the start of European bio-defense preparedness plan called “HERA Incubator.”

The Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) Incubator will bring together science, industry and public authorities, and leverage all available resources to enable Europe to respond to this challenge.

“The aim is to use our combined strength to get ahead of the curve for the next phase of this virus”, Ms von der Leyen said, explaining this applies to all phases - from the early detection of new variants, to rapid mass production that is necessary if there are adapted second-level or second-generation vaccines.