European law report - Patient mobility: More certainty in the pipeline
Getting to know what your rights are when you wish to receive medical treatment in a member state other than your own is currently no easy matter. You are faced with a number of questions to which there is no easily available reply: Do I have to seek...
Getting to know what your rights are when you wish to receive medical treatment in a member state other than your own is currently no easy matter. You are faced with a number of questions to which there is no easily available reply: Do I have to seek prior authorisation from the authorities in my own state? Would I be entitled to any financial compensation from such authorities? In fact, though freedom to provide and receive services is one of the cornerstones of the EU's internal market, much uncertainty arises when these fundamental rights are applied to healthcare services.
The European Court of Justice has often had the occasion to pronounce itself on an EU citizen's rights to seek healthcare in a member state other than his own. The court has affirmed that patients have, in certain cases, the right to access healthcare products and services in other member states with the cost being covered by their own health system.
Health services are to be considered as an economic activity and EU law on freedom to provide and receive services applies to such services as well, the European Court of Justice has asserted. Nonetheless, legal certainty is still greatly lacking in this field. Patients, health professionals and persons involved in member states' health systems are still uncertain about the practicalities and applicability of Community law to health services. Healthcare services are not currently regulated by the Services Directive or by any other specific EU law.
It seems that the European Commission has now taken a step in the right direction. It is currently drafting a law with the precise objective of ensuring the protection of basic rights for patients travelling to other EU member states in order to receive medical treatment.
Following a public consultation launched in October 2006 regarding the establishment of an EU framework on healthcare services, the Commission has now come up with concrete proposals. The law which it is currently drafting deals primarily with the rights of EU citizens when travelling to another member state with the purpose of receiving health care there. This law can in fact be seen to be partly a codification of the rights identified by the European Court of Justice in its rulings on the matter.
The proposed law maintains that such patients should receive health care similar to that which they would have been entitled to in their home country. Member states are obliged to ensure the quality and safety standards of the treatment provided. The authorities of a patient's home country ought to reimburse the cost for health care abroad up to at least the amount that the home state would have forked out had the patient been treated at home. Patients will still need to obtain authorisation prior to looking for medical treatment abroad, but they cannot be denied treatment if it is deemed "appropriate".
Member states would also be obliged to provide all the relevant information to enable informed choices by patients concerning availability, prices and outcomes of the health care they provide. This concerns in particular the question of liability and procedures to be followed in the event of medical malpractice. Furthermore, member states are encouraged to work together, using, among other things, telemedicine services, in order to assure cross-border exchange of patient data, while respecting privacy rights.
As a result of the draft directive, it is also envisaged that member states would have to establish rules concerning the EU-wide definition of treatment methods, including hospitalisation, as well as the cross-border recognition of prescriptions.
This proposed law will possibly provide much-needed legal clarity and certainty for both patients and healthcare service providers. EU citizens must be provided with a clear overview of the existing EU legal framework regarding access to healthcare and the reimbursement of the costs incurred in another member state if they are to make full use of their rights to freely receive and provide services within EU territory.
• Dr Vella Cardona is a freelance consultant in EU, intellectual property and competition law. She is also a visiting lecturer at the University of Malta.
The European Court of Justice has often had the occasion to pronounce itself on an EU citizen's rights to seek healthcare in a member state other than his own. The court has affirmed that patients have, in certain cases, the right to access healthcare products and services in other member states with the cost being covered by their own health system.
Health services are to be considered as an economic activity and EU law on freedom to provide and receive services applies to such services as well, the European Court of Justice has asserted. Nonetheless, legal certainty is still greatly lacking in this field. Patients, health professionals and persons involved in member states' health systems are still uncertain about the practicalities and applicability of Community law to health services. Healthcare services are not currently regulated by the Services Directive or by any other specific EU law.
It seems that the European Commission has now taken a step in the right direction. It is currently drafting a law with the precise objective of ensuring the protection of basic rights for patients travelling to other EU member states in order to receive medical treatment.
Following a public consultation launched in October 2006 regarding the establishment of an EU framework on healthcare services, the Commission has now come up with concrete proposals. The law which it is currently drafting deals primarily with the rights of EU citizens when travelling to another member state with the purpose of receiving health care there. This law can in fact be seen to be partly a codification of the rights identified by the European Court of Justice in its rulings on the matter.
The proposed law maintains that such patients should receive health care similar to that which they would have been entitled to in their home country. Member states are obliged to ensure the quality and safety standards of the treatment provided. The authorities of a patient's home country ought to reimburse the cost for health care abroad up to at least the amount that the home state would have forked out had the patient been treated at home. Patients will still need to obtain authorisation prior to looking for medical treatment abroad, but they cannot be denied treatment if it is deemed "appropriate".
Member states would also be obliged to provide all the relevant information to enable informed choices by patients concerning availability, prices and outcomes of the health care they provide. This concerns in particular the question of liability and procedures to be followed in the event of medical malpractice. Furthermore, member states are encouraged to work together, using, among other things, telemedicine services, in order to assure cross-border exchange of patient data, while respecting privacy rights.
As a result of the draft directive, it is also envisaged that member states would have to establish rules concerning the EU-wide definition of treatment methods, including hospitalisation, as well as the cross-border recognition of prescriptions.
This proposed law will possibly provide much-needed legal clarity and certainty for both patients and healthcare service providers. EU citizens must be provided with a clear overview of the existing EU legal framework regarding access to healthcare and the reimbursement of the costs incurred in another member state if they are to make full use of their rights to freely receive and provide services within EU territory.
• Dr Vella Cardona is a freelance consultant in EU, intellectual property and competition law. She is also a visiting lecturer at the University of Malta.