Hospital forum-shopping: ECJ clarifies conditions for reimbursement of expenses

10/10/14

In yesterday's judgment in C-268/13 Petru, the Court of Justice of the EU clarified  the conditions which must be met for a patient to obtain the reimbursement from her home State of certain medical expenses incurred in another Member State. On a reference from a Romanian court, the CJEU was asked to consider the interpretation of Article 22(2) of Regulation 1408/71 on social security schemes governing authorisation for such reimbursement.

The CJEU held that the authorisation necessary under Article 22(1)(c)(i) for reimbursement cannot be refused where it is because of a lack of medication and basic medical supplies and infrastructure such that the hospital care concerned cannot be provided in good time in the home State. The question as to whether that is impossible or not must be determined by reference to all the hospital establishments in the home State that are capable of providing the treatment in question and by reference to the period within which the treatment could be obtained in good time.

The judgment is here.

The ECJ press release is here.