Towards a European Health Union : What Role for Member States?

Guy, Mary (2021) Towards a European Health Union : What Role for Member States? European Journal of Risk Regulation, 11 (Specia). pp. 757-765. ISSN 1867-299X

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Abstract

Calls for a European Health Union apparently challenge long-standing beliefs that national healthcare system organisation is a Member State competence. Interaction between Member State and European Union (EU) levels therefore fundamentally requires reflection in the design, overall structure and legal basis of any European Health Union. Article 168(7) Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) provides the current version of the seemingly limited EU competence with regards to national healthcare system organisation and has received surprisingly little attention thus far. On the one hand, within the wider EU health competence ‘web’, Article 168(7) TFEU constrains EU adoption of measures incentivising Member States to use particular treatments or to increase intensive care units in response to COVID-19. On the other hand, Article 168(7) TFEU is challenged by the perceived influence of Country-Specific Recommendations issued in the context of the European Semester on national health policies. This opinion piece provides an original assessment of Article 168(7) TFEU to argue that Treaty change to redress the balance between EU and Member State competence regarding national healthcare systems may be uncalled for given both the flexibility afforded by the provision and the complexity and diversity of Member State healthcare systems.

Item Type:
Journal Article
Journal or Publication Title:
European Journal of Risk Regulation
Additional Information:
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/european-journal-of-risk-regulation/article/towards-a-european-health-union-what-role-for-member-states/16D43E96C08D9E06F66F759493600D0E The final, definitive version of this article has been published in the Journal, European Journal of Risk Regulation, 11, (4), pp 757-765 2020, © 2020 Cambridge University Press.
Uncontrolled Keywords:
/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/3300/3311
Subjects:
?? safety research ??
ID Code:
148375
Deposited By:
Deposited On:
21 Oct 2020 09:10
Refereed?:
Yes
Published?:
Published
Last Modified:
06 Feb 2024 00:56