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HORIZON EUROPE TOPIC · Cluster 1 · Health

European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness (Phase 2)

HORIZON-HLTH-2026-03-DISEASE-13 — the expected outcomes as checkable statements, what evaluators look for in this topic, and the conditions that shape the proposal.

ForthcomingCOFUNDDeadline 13 April 2027around EUR 63 million per project

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TopicHORIZON-HLTH-2026-03-DISEASE-13
StatusForthcoming
CallHORIZON-HLTH-2026-03 — Partnerships in Health (2026/2)
DestinationTackling diseases and reducing disease burden (2026-27)
Type of actionProgramme Cofund Actions
Opening10 February 2027
Deadline13 April 2027
Budgetaround EUR 63 million per project · 1 project expected · EUR 63 million in total
TemplateWork Programme 2026–2027 application form

Expected outcomes

Projects should contribute to all of the expected outcomes. The topic says: “This topic aims at supporting activities that are enabling or contributing to one or several expected impacts of destination “Tackling diseases and reducing disease burden”. Proposals under this topic should aim to deliver results that are directed at, tailored towards and contributing to all the following expected outcomes:”

  1. EO1 The EU offers a valued operational network of clinical research sites (both interventional and observational) that have the capacity to implement well-coordinated large-scale multi-country quality clinical studies in different target populations, which are able to smoothly transition to interventions relevant for cross-border health threats in readiness for or response to a public health emergency.
  2. EO2 Key stakeholders, including relevant EU and national entities, the scientific communities, policymakers and funders enhance their collaboration and coordination to strengthen research on pandemic preparedness and response, forming a strong, structured and comprehensive ecosystem with shared evidence, tools and methodologies cutting across sectors.
  3. EO3 Research funders, policymakers, relevant EU and national entities, and the research community recognise and rapidly close relevant research and related infrastructure gaps and break existing silos on pandemic preparedness research and response, adopting a One Health approach.
  4. EO4 Healthcare authorities, regulatory authorities, policymakers and other stakeholders utilise research results to develop evidence-based strategies and policies for pandemic preparedness and response, and deploy good practices to European countries and regions, and beyond whenever relevant.
  5. EO5 The research community benefits from and uses an improved comprehensive knowledge framework integrating the EU, national/regional data and information infrastructures to improve transnational research in the area of pandemic preparedness and response.
  6. EO6 The EU is strengthened as an internationally recognised actor for pandemic preparedness research and response, as such substantially contributing to global cooperation and coordination.

Expected impacts named in the destination

The wider, long-term effects the destination seeks. Your outcomes feed them; they are not project deliverables.

  1. EI1 Disease burden in the EU and worldwide is reduced through effective disease management, including through the development and integration of innovative preventive, diagnostic and therapeutic approaches, digital and other people-centred solutions for healthcare.
  2. EI2 Premature mortality from non-communicable diseases is reduced by one third (by 2030), mental health and wellbeing are promoted, and the targets of the World Health Organization (WHO) Global Action Plan for the Prevention and Control of non-communicable diseases, are attained, with an immediate impact on the related disease burden (Disability-Adjusted Life Years - DALYs).
  3. EI3 Healthcare systems benefit from strengthened Research and Innovation expertise, human capacities and know-how for combatting communicable and non-communicable diseases, including through international cooperation.
  4. EI4 Citizens benefit from reduced (cross-border) health threat of epidemics and AMR pathogens, in the EU and worldwide,,.
  5. EI5 Patients and citizens are knowledgeable of disease threats, involved and empowered to make and shape decisions for their health, and better adhere to knowledge-based disease management strategies and policies (especially for controlling outbreaks and emergencies).

What evaluators will look for in this topic

Expected outcomes

  • Projects should contribute to all of the expected outcomes.
  • For each outcome (EO1 to EO6), name who will use or adopt your results (a specific group, not “industry” or “society”), how they get them, and the indicator that shows the change, with baseline, target and date.
  • Use the topic's own words for each outcome, so the evaluator can tick it off.

What the scope asks for

Evaluators check the proposal against these sentences of the scope. Answer each one visibly, in the call's own words.

  • “The award of a grant to continue the partnership in accordance with this call should be based on a proposal submitted by the coordinator of the consortium funded under topic HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01: “European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness” and the additional activities (which may include additional partners) to be funded by the grant, such as the close coordination with the Clinical Trial Coordination Mechanism (CT-CM), should…”
  • “The partnership should be firmly anchored within the framework of the European Health Union package and ensure synergies with the European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) and other relevant Commission services.”
  • “The partnership’s activities are expected to be key enablers of the EU Global Health Strategy.”
  • “Taking into account that the present action is a continuation of the topic HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01: “European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness” and foresees an amendment to an existing grant agreement, the proposal should present the additional activities (including additional partners) to be covered by the award primarily in terms of grant agreement revisions.”
  • “The partnership should contribute to the actions proposed in the Joint Communication on the European Preparedness Union Strategy (JOIN(2025) 130 final) which recognises the essential contribution of research and innovation to allow “continuously adapted, optimised and state-of-the-art responses to crisis”.”
  • “It should also contribute to the “Strategy for European Life Sciences”.”
  • “Synergies with EU programmes such as EU4Health Programme (2021-2027) or the Digital Europe Programme are encouraged.”
  • “The co-funded Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness should enable improved coordination and cooperation on national and European levels (and contributing globally), building on the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) established in the first phase of the partnership.”
  • “As a continuation of an existing action, the proposal should present the additional activities (including additional partners) to be covered by the award primarily in terms of grant agreement revisions.”
  • “The partnership should cover the full scope of preparedness research, ranging from basic and pre-clinical research, to clinical, public health, social sciences and implementation research.”
  • “In this regard, the partnership should ensure that provisions are in place for the close coordination with the CT-CM, which i) should facilitate providing scientific advice on the clinical research needs in preparedness and response to public health emergencies, and ii) promote a coordinated approach to the national and EU funding of identified clinical research needs.”
  • “The partnership should strengthen the European Research Area by supporting excellence in innovative research and capacity building, widening the engagement of countries not yet involved.”

Conditions that shape the proposal

  • Other Eligibility Conditions: “The proposal must be submitted by the coordinator of the consortium funded under topic HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01: “European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness”. This eligibility condition is without prejudice to the possibility to include additional partners.”
  • Other Eligibility Conditions: “In recognition of the opening of the US National Institutes of Health’s programmes to European researchers, any legal entity established in the United States of America is eligible to receive Union funding. Because the US contribution will be considered for the calculation of the EU contribution to the partnership,…”
  • Other Eligibility Conditions: “Subject to restrictions for the protection of European communication networks.”
  • Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds: “The evaluation will take into account the existing context and the scope of the initial evaluation as relevant, and related obligations enshrined in the grant agreement.”
  • Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds: “If the proposal is successful, the next stage of the procedure will be grant agreement amendment preparations.”
  • Evaluation and award: Award criteria, scoring and thresholds: “If the outcome of amendment preparations is an award decision, the coordinator of the consortium funded under topic HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01: “European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness” will be invited to submit an amendment to the grant agreement, on behalf of the beneficiaries.”

Impact pathway and traps

  • The topic asks for social sciences and humanities (SSH) expertise. Evaluators look for SSH partners with a real role in the methodology, not a token task.
  • Users or citizens are part of the scope. Show how they take part in the design and testing, not only that they are informed.
  • The scope expects pilots or demonstration. Name the sites, the partners who run them and what is measured there.
  • Standardisation is mentioned. Name the committees or bodies and the partner who engages with them.
  • The topic expects cooperation with other projects or initiatives. Reserve effort and budget for it in the work plan.
  • Open science or data practices are named. Make the data management plan concrete: which data, which repository, when.
  • Policy or regulation is in scope. Name the policy owners you will reach and what you will give them.
  • Keep outputs, outcomes and impacts apart: what you deliver, what changes when others use it, and the long-term effect.
  • For each destination impact you claim, show which of your outcomes feeds it. Destination impacts are long-term effects, not project deliverables.
  • Name the barriers outside the project (regulation, markets, user behaviour) that could block uptake, and what you will do if they do.
  • Section 2.3 (the summary canvas) is optional on this call; the old split into scientific, economic and societal impact is no longer required.
The scope, as published

This topic targets an action under Article 24(2) HE Regulation aiming to add additional activities to existing grant agreements, together with additional partners (if relevant) that would deliver on those activities. The award of a grant to continue the partnership in accordance with this call should be based on a proposal submitted by the coordinator of the consortium funded under topic HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01: “European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness” and the additional activities (which may include additional partners) to be funded by the grant, such as the close coordination with the Clinical Trial Coordination Mechanism (CT-CM), should be subject to an evaluation. The partnership should be firmly anchored within the framework of the European Health Union package and ensure synergies with the European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) and other relevant Commission services. The partnership’s activities are expected to be key enablers of the EU Global Health Strategy. Taking into account that the present action is a continuation of the topic HORIZON-HLTH-2024-DISEASE-12-01: “European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness” and foresees an amendment to an existing grant agreement, the proposal should present the additional activities (including additional partners) to be covered by the award primarily in terms of grant agreement revisions. The existing action, the “Be Ready Now - European Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness” (BE READY NOW) can only reasonably be enhanced and enlarged on the basis of the existing consortium, as the co-funded framework established cannot simply be replaced without significant disruption, given the top-quality, long-term expertise and wide coverage of the beneficiaries comprising this consortium. The partnership should contribute to the actions proposed in the Joint Communication on the European Preparedness Union Strategy (JOIN(2025) 130 final) which recognises the essential contribution of research and innovation to allow “continuously adapted, optimised and state-of-the-art responses to crisis”. It should also contribute to the “Strategy for European Life Sciences”. Synergies with EU programmes such as EU4Health Programme (2021-2027) or the Digital Europe Programme are encouraged. The co-funded Partnership for Pandemic Preparedness should enable improved coordination and cooperation on national and European levels (and contributing globally), building on the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA) established in the first phase of the partnership. The partnership’s implementation is grounded in coordinating and jointly funding transnational research, combined with a strong focus on integrative ‘in-house’ activities, ultimately reinforcing the readiness of Europe’s research ecosystem. As a continuation of an existing action, the proposal should present the additional activities (including additional partners) to be covered by the award primarily in terms of grant agreement revisions. The partnership should cover the full scope of preparedness research, ranging from basic and pre-clinical research, to clinical, public health, social sciences and implementation research. The partnership will consider the interplay between environmental, ecological and climatic factors and the emergence and spread of health threats and will adopt a One Health approach to better understand and mitigate the risks of emerging infectious diseases. Of particular interest is the consolidation and further development of the ever-warm clinical research network, comprising both observational and interventional studies, ensuring continuous clinical research activity across diverse sites, and with the in-built capacity to rapidly respond to public health emergencies. In this regard, the partnership should ensure that provisions are in place for the close coordination with the CT-CM, which i) should facilitate providing scientific advice on the clinical research needs in preparedness and response to public health emergencies, and ii) promote a coordinated approach to the national and EU funding of identified clinical research needs. The partnership should strengthen the European Research Area by supporting excellence in innovative research and capacity building, widening the engagement of countries not yet involved. As a demonstration of its added value, the partnership should be able to attract the engagement of a broad range of stakeholders beyond European health authorities and research funders, such as private and philanthropic actors and innovators. The participation of start-ups, micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) is encouraged with the aim of strengthening their scientific and technological foundations, enhancing their innovation potential, and exploring possibilities for commercial exploitation. The relevant European research infrastructures in the area of health should be exploited for available services, expertise and digital tools for dataset creation, standardisation, data discovery, secure access, management, visualization, harmonization, analysis and other functions as appropriate. When defining calls for proposals in the context of jointly funded transnational research, the partnership should consider sex and identity-related differences. If relevant, it also needs to consider the effective contribution of social sciences and humanities (SSH) disciplines and the involvement of SSH experts, institutions as well as the inclusion of relevant SSH expertise, to produce meaningful and significant effects enhancing the societal impact of the related research activities. The support and involvement of citizens and civil society should be considered. The partnership will consolidate a suitable health research data ecosystem aligned with the European Health Data Space (EHDS), and the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) supporting the harmonisation and standardisation as well as the federated access of FAIR research…

Source and attribution

Topic text from the official topic page on the EU Funding & Tenders Portal, retrieved 19 October 2026. © European Union, reused under Commission Decision 2011/833/EU (CC BY 4.0). Changes: the expected outcomes and impacts are split into numbered statements, long passages are shortened, and the evaluator checklist is GrantWise's own commentary. Your call and the Work Programme always win; check them before you submit. GrantWise is independent and not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of the European Commission.