Source: European Parliament
The Commission recognises that many EU citizens seek medical and dental treatments abroad, driven by cost differences or limited public coverage of costs in their home countries.
To monitor this trend, the Commission collects annual data on patient mobility within EU/ European Economic Area (EEA) countries.
It is important to note that data from non-EU countries are not included in these reports. The data are broadly categorised into planned and unplanned treatments; however, they do not provide specific disaggregation for dental treatments. For further details, the last available report is accessible online[1].
Cross-border healthcare within the EU is governed by Directive 2011/24/EU[2] and the Social Security Coordination Regulations[3]. These legislative frameworks address key aspects such as treatment, reimbursement, patient safety, and liability issues.
However, they do not apply to healthcare services outside the EU, EEA, and Switzerland, except for the United Kingdom, where social security provisions similar to the regulations apply thanks to the Withdrawal Agreement and the Trade and Cooperation Agreement.
The Commission has no legal framework for healthcare services accessed outside the EU or EEA countries, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
Citizens are strongly advised to consult their respective National Contact Points (NCPs) designated at the national level in accordance with Directive 2011/24/EU[4].
The NCPs can provide information to the patients about their rights to cross-border healthcare, including conditions for reimbursement and procedural requirements, such as the authorisation process for planned treatments and applicable tariffs, among others.
- [1] https://health.ec.europa.eu/latest-updates/data-cross-border-patient-healthcare-following-directive-201124eu-reference-year-2022-2024-04-19_en
- [2] http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2011/24/oj
- [3] https://employment-social-affairs.ec.europa.eu/policies-and-activities/moving-working-europe/eu-social-security-coordination/frequently-asked-questions/faq-social-security-regulations_en
- [4] http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2011/24/oj