The high level reflection proces on patient mobility has ended with the publication on 8 December 2003 of the final report which includes a series of recommendations.
In June 2002 the Commission was asked by Member States (MS) to facilitate a reflection process on patient mobility; EPHA has been tracking this process on behalf of our members.
What is patient mobility? The European Union was and remains primarily an economic union, to facilitate the free movement of goods and services. Some citizens have argued that consequently they should be able to access the services of health care systems in other MS, without incurring the cost of a foreign national.
The European Court of Justice in a number of key rulings (Kohll and Decker, and subsequently in Smits-Peerbooms), has established the principle that in certain cases, patients have the right to access treatment in another MS, with the cost borne by their own national governments. To read more about the issues surrounding patient mobility, click here
The implications are so significant in terms of potential cost for MS that a high reflection process was set up.
Member states and selected stakeholders explored the issue and its consequences in more depth. The partcipants were divided into strands outlined below, to examine specific areas of concern.
The process has been confidential and lacking transparency - a source of much criticsm. An overview of this process is available in an EPHA briefing paper
The report attached below, is an outcome of those deliberations. It is structured around five themes or strands:
European cooperation to enable better use of resources;
information requirements for patients, professionals and policy-makers;
access to and quality of care;
reconciling national health policy with European obligations
and health-related issues and the Union’s cohesion and structural funds.
Although the Commission provided the secretariat for this process, the report does not represent the views of the Commission, who plan to respond in March 2004.
