Report shows Europeans have limited access to health care

Europeans have poor access to health care and medical innovation and they complain about insufficient information on their healthcare choices, a report reveals.

Portugal, Ireland and the UK top the blacklist, as the most burdensome for citizens.

"Citizens' report on the implementation of the European charter of patients' rights" was presented at a conference organised by the Active Citizenship Network (ACN) in Brussels.

The study suggests that European citizens face widespread obstacles in health care – mainly the lack of coverage by public insurance for health services, administrative and economic complications in accessing services, and difficulties in obtaining medication from other European countries.

The criticism applies mainly to Portugal, Ireland and the UK, while Austria and Greece come out best in this context.

According to the report, in some countries – like Ireland and Italy, "the interviewed confirm the existence of obstacles that in reality limit certain groups of the population to fully benefit from the services guaranteed by the mandatory public insurance coverage".

Specific cases of discrimination against citizens who should normally be covered by health services were monitored in Austria, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Sweden, Portugal and the UK.

Lack of information
All countries included in the research reported some restrictions on patients' possibilities to choose their healthcare providers and treatment.

In several states, citizens need to get authorisation for some treatments and face differing fees between public and private hospitals, as well as varied supplementary insurance coverage.

"In some cases there exist incentives for people to seek treatment in private hospitals, and indigent patients are only able to be treated in certain hospitals", suggested the study.

Delays in introducing innovative treatments in hospitals – except for some central and big facilities were also reported.

The study was carried out in the EU-15 member states, and in 39 of the biggest and most important hospitals, institutes and health organisations in Europe last year.

It monitored to which extent health providers respected the Charter of patients' rights, introduced in 2002. It enlisted fourteen rights currently at risk in the EU due to the financial crisis of national welfare systems.

The ACN suggests that these rights are grounded in the European Charter of Fundamental Rights, which is part of the new EU Constitution and should be respected both at national and European level.