Cross border access to healthcare services within the European Union

This article focuses on the issue of "medical tourism" and the extent to which patients resident in EU member states have a legally enforceable right to access healthcare services in other EU member states which are paid for by such patients' home member states. The article explains the various relevant legislation and explores the tensions within it and also focuses on various recent cases which have discussed whether prior authorization systems in relation to cross border medical treatment are justifiable in the objective public interest. The article also looks at the most recent developments in the case law concerning EU based national health services.