Patients in the EU will be allowed to receive non-hospital treatment outside their home country without pre-approval from their doctor or health authority, under new proposals unveiled by the European Commission today.
The patient's home healthcare service will have to pay the bill, but only up to the amount the treatment would cost in the home state. When the cost of treatment is larger, the patient will foot the difference.
However, for some forms of hospital care EU member states will be allowed to introduce a system in which patients may require approval before seeking care abroad.
This will involve circumstances where health authorities fear there may be a major outflow of patients to another member state. However, European Commission officials said today this is unlikely, as most patients prefer treatment at home.
The procedures covered only include those which are available in a patient's home country. For example, an Irish woman would not be able to get an abortion abroad and have it paid for by the Health Service Executive (HSE).
Patients will have to pay the costs to healthcare providers up front, but will have those costs met afterwards by their own health authority up to the level of reimbursement for treatment in their national health system.
The draft directive will now be examined by the European Parliament and individual member states. However, it could be between two and three years before all the proposals become law.
The proposal on health treatment was part of a series of social protection measures which the European Commission announced today.
The announcement comes just weeks after Irish voters rejected the Lisbon Treaty. During the debate, 'No' campaigners accused Brussels of becoming increasingly distant from its citizens.
However, European Commission officials said its proposals were part of its "renewed social agenda" and illustrated its commitment to empower and helping its citizens.
Another draft law seeks to stop discrimination outside work on grounds of age, sexual orientation, disability and religion or belief. Such discrimination at work is already illegal. Examples include a hotel or B&B operator refusing to give a gay couple a room on the basis that they are homosexual.
Officials said the proposal would not cover family law, so it would not try to legalise homosexual marriages.
The Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (Glen) today welcomed the measures which it said would play a key role in helping to protect gay and lesbians from discrimination across the EU.
