Ministers reject proposal on cross-border healthcare
Spain and Hungary lead efforts to block draft law for patients' right to treatment in other EU member states.
A draft law setting out patients' rights to treatment in other EU countries was vigorously rejected at a meeting of EU health ministers today, leaving the proposal's future in doubt.
Spain and Hungary led at least nine countries to block the draft directive on cross-border healthcare. Sweden, current chair of the EU presidency, had battled for a compromise until the last moment, but was forced to concede defeat after last-ditch discussions broke down.
The European Commission said it may now abandon the proposal, leaving the European Court of Justice (ECJ) to decide when patients are entitled to be reimbursed for healthcare treatment in another EU country.
As well as Spain and Hungary, Ireland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia, Greece and Lithuania raised objections to the proposal.
EU institutions have been battling over the ideas behind this directive for several years. Earlier versions of the draft law raised opposition in the Parliament and the Commission.
On average, EU countries spend around 1% of the public healthcare budget on cross-border care. This mainly affects patients with rare diseases and people living in border regions. The European Commission has estimated that its proposal would increase costs by €90 million each year, around two-thirds of which would be administrative costs.