MEP warns of Health Services Directive threat to NHS
11 August 2008
Traditional Unionist MEP Jim Allister has warned that the EU Commission’s recent proposal for a Directive on Health Services could result in an unfair diversion of NHS resources away from low-income families.
In a statement Mr Allister said:-
“Recently the EU published its proposed Directive on Health Services. The law was initially proposed in December last year, but was withdrawn after widespread controversy.
The draft law would enable citizens of one EU country to go abroad to another member state to seek treatment, not something of itself objectionable. Patients in the EU would be allowed to receive non-hospital treatment outside their home country without pre-approval from their doctor or health authority. The patient's home healthcare service will then 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 have to top up the difference.
Two particular features of the Directive are problematic and would potentially favour higher income groups. Firstly, the fact that people would spend money on treatments abroad, and then be reimbursed later, and secondly, that the system would operate on a top-up basis - patients could get a certain proportion of the cost of a treatment reimbursed by the NHS, but make up the difference themselves. Both these features would tend to lead to the diversion of resources towards higher income groups. Put simply, if the well-off use up the NHS budget buying services abroad, there will be less money left for those who cannot afford to top up the difference.
Ironically, both main parties in GB have been resisting moves towards allowing such "top up" payments in the UK. However, Health Minister Alan Johnson was forced to announce a review of the policy in June after a series of high profile cases where patients wanted to top up.
While there are good arguments for introducing markets into healthcare, there are big problems with this Directive, which could lead to unfair queue-jumping by the well-off, marking the end of the way we run healthcare in this country. If we have to choose between the EU Health Directive and the NHS, then preserving the NHS must be the priority.”
