Philippe Brunet, head of cabinet for the recently-appointed Health Commissioner Androulla Vassiliou, has said that the Commission remains “fully committed” to its draft directive on cross border healthcare.
The directive has twice been delayed – in December and January – but Brunet told an EU seminar that the aim now was “to ensure that the issue remains at the top of the agenda.”
The directive will set out proposals for produce legislation regarding the circumstances under which EU patients can legitimately be covered for treatment received in other member states.
No date has yet been set for publication, but Brunet said that the Commission is “trying to reserve a time slot to present the final proposal of the text in the coming months.
“One thing is sure and that is we do not intend to allow this to disappear. After all, at the end of the day, it is all about improving patient rights.”
Brunet served as head of cabinet under former health commissioner Markos Kyprianou, and has been reappointed following the appointment of Vassiliou.
