Cross border health directive must put patients first - MEP

10.00.00am GMT Thu 25th Sep 2008

Public health campaigner and MEP Liz Lynne (ALDE, UK) has today welcomed the proposed cross border health directive, but warned the directive must benefit all Europe's citizens.

Her comments come as the European Parliament debated cross border healthcare proposals that would give all EU citizens a framework of rights to seek medical treatment in other EU Member States. The proposal follows a 2006 European Court of Justice ruling that the NHS could not refuse to refund costs of overseas treatment if patients waited longer than clinicians advised, even if waiting list targets were met.

The proposals will allow any patient facing a delay who has the funds to pay for an operation upfront to seek treatment abroad and later reclaim the costs from the NHS.

Liz Lynne, West Midlands Liberal Democrat MEP and Co-Chair of campaign group MEPs against Cancer commented today:

Why should a patient have to lose their sight waiting for a cataract operation in the UK, for instance, when it could be done in another Member State? If a clinician advises treatment and this cannot be provided at home, then we need a legal framework to ensure that they can seek it elsewhere.

All too often it is the poorest people that face discrimination and inequality in access to healthcare. And that is why we must ensure that Member States can authorise treatment in another country prior to that treatment.

We must not restrict cross border health to those who can afford it. Equally, this new directive must not compromise standards of care for those people who choose to stay in their home country.

We must also ensure there are safeguards in place that put the rights and safety of the patient first. That is why it is vital that a mechanism is developed to share patient's records between the patient's home country and the country where they receive treatment. Apart from that, we need to develop a system of compensation for patients who suffer avoidable harm when being treated in another EU country.

With regards to sharing of best practice, all too often, whether we look at Healthcare Acquired Infections or Cancer screening guidelines, the answer is on our doorstep. It is about time that we started learning from each other more effectively and this directive has the potential to help us achieve that.

ENDS

Notes:

MEPs against Cancer: http://www.mepsagainstcancer.org/