Proposals for a directive on patients' rights in cross-border healthcare are currently being discussed at EU level.

Patients already have the right, under European law, to receive medical treatment anywhere in the European Union and, subject to certain conditions, the costs, or a proportion of them, must be reimbursed by their home country. The draft proposals, put forward by the European Commission in July 2008, aim to clarify the rules around these existing rights. The proposals are subject to a process of negotiation, and the final text must be agreed by the health ministers of the EU countries and the European Parliament before they can become law.

Your voice counts

Following your responses to our consultation paper we are currently drafting the final NHS position on the European Commission's proposals and will be working with EU decision-makers to influence the negotiations and to ensure that potential implications for the NHS receive proper consideration.

Drawing on the consultation responses, Jo Webber, the NHS Confederation's Deputy Director of Policy, recently gave evidence to the House of Lords' EU Scrutiny Committee as part of their inquiry into the proposals.

Background

Patients' rights to cross-border healthcare have been established in a number of European Court cases, including that of NHS patient Yvonne Watts. Mrs Watts went to France for a hip replacement to avoid a long wait in England. Following a refusal from her PCT to reimburse her costs, she took her case to the courts, ultimately reaching the European Court of Justice (ECJ). Yvonne Watts' case is particularly important for the NHS as it established that European rules on patient mobility do apply to the NHS.

The draft Directive has been produced in response to requests from national governments and the European Parliament to clarify the rules on patients' rights to cross-border healthcare.

Whilst negotiations on the draft Directive take place, the existing rules on cross-border healthcare remain in force and it is important that NHS organisations are aware of these.

The NHS European Office has prepared summaries giving an introduction to the existing rules aimed at commissioners and providers.

For further information, contact: helena.bowden@nhsconfed.org