The European Commission has published on 24 February two studies regarding cross-border health care with the aim to enhance the implementation of the Directive 2011/24/EU on the application of patients’ rights in cross-border healthcare:
The Study on Enhancing the implementation of the Cross-Border Healthcare Directive aims to ensure patient rights in the EU. It includes various reports describing the systems of prior authorisation implemented by EU member states for patients to be reimbursed for their planned healthcare abroad and the administrative procedures they are required to follow. In the link, you will find the final report, the executive summary, the guiding principles on prior authorisation and other documents.
The second study, Cross-border patient mobility in selected EU regions, carried out by the AEBR, analyses cross-border patient flows in the cross-border regions across the triple border of Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands (Meuse-Rhine), Grand Est Region (France) and Luxembourg, Lower Austria with the Czech Republic and Slovakia, and the general patient flow between Poland and Czechia. This study has found that there is a lack of data, or they are inconsistent, making it thus difficult to assess the impact of cross-border healthcare under the Directive. It makes a number of recommendations to improve patient mobility data involving national and regional authorities, healthcare insurers and other stakeholders. Here you will find the Final Report and the Executive Summary (in EN, FR, DE, NL, CZ and PL) on the website of the European Commission, but you can also find them in AEBR’s virtual library.
The findings provide evidence for the Commission’s ongoing work to evaluate the Directive’s impact on patients seeking cross-border healthcare in the neighbouring country.
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