Vytenis Andriukaitis

Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis (born 9 August 1951) is a Lithuanian physician and politician of the Social Democratic Party serving as a member of the European Parliament since 2024. A heart surgeon by profession, he previously served as European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety in the Juncker Commission from 2014 to 2019. Andriukaitis was a co-signatory to the 1990 Act of the Re-Establishment of the State of Lithuania

Andriukaitis' family was deported to Siberia in June 1941. He, his mother and two older brothers were allowed to return to Lithuania in 1958; his father returned in 1959. After excelling at school, he enrolled at Kaunas Medical Institute, graduating in 1975. In 1976 Andriukaitis started his career in politics as a member of the underground Social Democrat movement, but later continued his studies by pursuing a degree in history at Vilnius University, graduating in 1984.

Andriukaitis was elected to the Supreme Council of the Republic of Lithuania, which preceded Seimas (Lithuanian Parliament), in 1990. Andriukaitis was a member of the Lithuanian Parliament for six terms, from 1992 to 2004 and from 2008 to 2012, and was a deputy chairman of its council from 2001 to 2004. He was a health minister of the Republic of Lithuania since December 2012 until the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker appointed him to serve as an EU Commissioner in November 2014. After the term as European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety Andriukaitis became WHO Special Envoy for the European region in March 2020 and in July 2024 he became a member of the European Parliament.

Early life Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis was born in Kyusyur, Yakut Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic, USSR. His father, Alfonsas Andriukaitis and mother Liuda Andriukaitienė, pregnant at the time, together with two small children were deported from Lithuania to Siberia by Soviet Communists in June 1941. While there, they only had access to Russian literature; Andriukaitis learned Lithuanian from his mother, who would write down Lithuanian fairy tales, which he would later read.

In 1954, the family received a permission to relocate to Olyokminsk in continental USSR. In 1957, they were allowed to return to Lithuania after his mother was awarded a medal of honour for raising five children. The family moved to Kaunas, Lithuania – he, his mother and two brothers, Antanas and Petras, joined later by their father Alfonsas in 1959. In 1976 Andriukaitis started his career in politics as a member of the underground Social Democratic movement, participating in their many activities. He was a founder of the University of Antanas Strazdelis, an underground "university", where members of the resistance movement studied works of the prohibited authors, exchanged books from personal libraries and practiced a humanist way of life (1975–1982). The "university" rejected dictatorship, nazism, fascism, autocratic regimes or nationalism and united students by promoting values of democracy, pluralism, multi-party politics, freedom of ideas, philosophy and religion and diversity.

In 1976 Andriukaitis was arrested and questioned by the KGB, and forced by the Soviet government to not leave Ignalina for three years, where he was under supervision by the local KGB office. In March 2016, he was also appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to the High-Level Commission on Health Employment and Economic Growth, which was co-chaired by presidents François Hollande of France and Jacob Zuma of South Africa.

Shortly after the United Kingdom's 2016 vote to withdraw from the European Union, Nigel Farage gave a speech including a statement that members of the EU parliament had never "done a proper job in their lives". A video of Andriukaitis covering his face with his hand at that remark went viral. He later published a blog entry explaining his objections to the speech.

Andriukaitis was elected in the 2024 European Parliament election, he is a member of ENVI committee, a coordinator in SANT committee and a substitute in AFCO committee.

In November 2024, Andriukaitis was one of only seven members of the 105-strong Lithuanian Social Democratic Party council to vote in opposition to a coalition with the nationalist party Dawn of Nemunas, whose founder Remigijus Žemaitaitis is known for antisemitic statements.

Honours

Decorations

Doctor Honoris Causa by State University for Medicine and Pharmacy of the Republic of Moldova

Awards 1996 – 1991 January 13 Commemorative Medal. 2000 – Lithuanian Independence 10th Anniversary Medal. 2002 – Baltic Assembly Medal (for supporting Baltic unity and cooperation). 2004 – Commemorative Medal of Lithuania's accession to the European Union. 2004 – Upon Lithuania's accession to NATO: a memorable statue of “Gražina”. 2004 – Honorary Fellow of the Lithuanian Law University. 2005 – Honorary Badge of Doctor of Merit of Lithuania (as one of the initiators of the development of the Lithuanian national health concept and the Lithuanian legal framework for the health system). 2010 – Lithuanian Restoration of Independence 20th Anniversary Medal. 2012 – Constitutional Cup – nominal Constitution – for the development of the Constitution awarded by the Faculty of Law of Vilnius University on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Constitution of the Republic of Lithuania. 2013 – Commemorative Award of the President of the Republic of Lithuania for the personal contribution to the Lithuanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union in 2013. 2014 – Award of the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania for the contribution to Lithuania's membership in the EU and its strengthening. 2014 – vice-president of the 67th World Health Assembly nominated by the Regional Office for Europe of the World Health Organization. 2014 – Award of the World Health Organization for the merits in the area of tobacco control. 2017 – Honorary Membership by Mykolas Romeris University

Publications

1990–2004 author of more than 140 legislative proposals and amendments. 2002–2003 author and co-author of the contributions to the Convention on the Future of Europe. 1990–2004 co-author and editor of the publications of the Parliament of the Republic of Lithuania and the Parliamentary Committee on European Affairs: The Parliament's role in the Lithuania's road to the European Union; The role of Parliament in EU membership conditions; 1997–2003 Joint Inter-parliamentary Committee on Accession to the EU — The Overview of Lithuanian Activities; Input to the publications to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Baltic Freedom in the margins of the Conference “Baltic freedom: The West's approach to 1983 January 13th European Parliament resolution 'on the situation in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania'”; Materials for the "International Conference on National Constitution in the context of EU enlargement"; Materials, including a declaration in the International Conference on the EU enlargement and the wider European vision; Debates on the future of Europe. In 2006 “Social Democrats in Lithuanian Parliaments”. In 2023 co-author and editor of "A European Health Union. A Blueprint for Generations".