The European Union (EU) Directive safeguarding patients who choose to obtain health care in another EU Member State will come into force towards the end of this month. All Member States will transpose the Directive into their national legislation by October 25.

This Directive was discussed during a citizens’ dialogue held yesterday in Valletta and organised by MEUSAC.

Chief Medical Officer, Dr Natasha Azzopardi Muscat; Superintendent for Public Health, Dr Ray Busuttil; and Director of EU Affairs within the Ministry of Health, Karen Demicoli, explained to all those attending this Public Dialogue how this Directive will be implemented in Malta. They also explained how Maltese citizens stand to gain from the benefits emanating from this Directive.

This Directive was drawn in order to safeguard patients within the EU who wished to be treated in other Member States and who were encountering obstacles when it came to reimbursement. Reimbursement is given according to certain established criteria which need to be fulfilled and according to the cost on the national health care system for the same medical care given outside the country. This applies both to health care obtained in public and private hospitals.

The Ministry officials stated that through this Directive patients will know clearly and at an early stage how much the cost of health care obtained in another Member State will be. They will also know the amount of compensation due to them.

During this debate, it was explained that coordination already exists when it comes to health care between Member States, especially with the European Health Insurance Card, pharmaceutical services, donation of blood and organs, rare and communicable diseases and e-health.

This Directive will also strengthen and regularise health care whilst ensuring that countries or hospitals chosen by patients to obtain treatment are of a high standard and free from all risks.

Thanks to this Directive, Member States shall be obliged to offer all the information that a patient requires on the quality of services, on the hospitals, on the reimbursement system applicable, the buying of prescription medicine in another EU Member State and other information which is extremely relevant to the patient.

This will not only put their minds at rest but will help the patients concerned to make the best possible choice regarding their health. All this will be done through the establishment of a National Contact Point that will be known and accessible to patients and which will be in close collaboration with similar centres in other Member States.

The speakers said that the European Health Insurance Card will continue to apply in cases where citizens encounter an emergency health problem overseas. However and thanks to this Directive, patients who obtain treatment outside their country and according to established criteria can ask to be reimbursed from their own Member State.

Treatments not falling within the national health care system, such as the IVF treatment, will not be reimbursed.

When this Directive enters into force the most important thing will be the fact that patients can look for and find all the necessary information including treatments covered, the doctor’s reference and all the necessary authority permits.

The speakers answered questions put forth by those participating in this public dialogue on this Directive, namely that:

Bilateral agreements with other countries, which have been in place for several years and whereby patients need to be given treatment in the United Kingdom and Italy, as Malta does not offer the said treatment, will not be affected.

Prevention and information campaigns on health should take place in a considered manner to ensure that these same campaigns have the desired effect on the population.

Malta’s vast and long experience in the health care sector which entails authorisation and reimbursement should only make it easier for this Directive to be a success.

Head of MEUSAC, Dr Vanni Xuereb closed the debate by stating that this series of public debates held by MEUSAC throughout these months in several public places as part of activities for the European Year of the Citizens 2013 had achieved their purpose because they gave citizens a chance to make their voices heard on various issues that affect them as citizens of the EU.

These public debates were financed by the EU under the Management Partnership between MEUSAC and the European Commission.

Permalink: MEUSAC citizens’ dialogue – Healthy citizens, a Healthy Europe