Take-home message for Rosie Winterton and Patricia Hewitt:
'Health care is no ordinary commodity and should not be
governed by free market principles'
Mcdaid,D wrote:
> FYI - Press Release from the Ministry of Health and
> Social Affairs in Sweden on the international forum that
> has just taken place in Stockholm
>
> Best wishes
>
> David McDaid LSE Health and Social Care
>
> http://www.sweden.gov.se/sb/d/5655/a/48715
>
> International Forum on equal access to health care
>
> Health Ministers of Belgium, Germany, Portugal, Spain,
> Sweden and United Kingdom met in Stockholm on 28-29
> August 2005 to continue discussions initiated in Aachen
> in August 2004 and Toledo in March 2005. Their discussion
> focused on how to improve health care for the benefit of
> patients and particularly what role European cooperation
> shall play in improving quality, accessibility, safety,
> innovation, efficiency et cetera. Ministers also
> discussed how to ensure that future developments are
> driven by the fundamental values of equity, universality
> and solidarity. In essence, that everyone should be
> guaranteed all the health care they need, regardless of
> ability to pay.
>
> - European health systems, even though they have
> organisational differences, share some basic common
> values, namely equity, universality and solidarity. We
> need to find out concrete ways to put these principles
> into practice in the context of an enlarged European
> Union, reinforcing quality and sustainability, and
> setting the patients in the core of our political
> discussions and initiatives, said Elena Salgado.
>
> - Health care is no ordinary commodity and should not be
> governed by free market principles. I therefore assume
> that health care will be excluded from the draft Services
> Directive. I however, wish to continue to discuss if
> there is a need some kind of patient mobility directive
> to ensure the safety for patients who receives care
> abroad, continued Ylva Johansson.
>
> - We welcome the freedom of movement in Europe and want
> to increase patient mobility. This requires a clear
> framework, which we provide sovereignly at the national
> level. The services directive is not the appropriate
> place for this, elaborated Ulla Schmidt.
>
> - When thinking about health, market is not an end in
> itself. Some market mechanisms can however be used in the
> health care sector under strong regulation, as
> instruments to improve effectiveness, efficiency as well
> as equity in health and to ensure the political and
> social objectives that inspire a renovated European
> Social Model, continued António Correia de Campos.
>
> - Health care is an integral part of the greater
> discussion on the European Social Model. Further
> investment in our systems is needed to promote medical
> science and to face the challenges of an aging
> population. If properly oriented, health expenditure is
> not expenditure but an investment in human capital, said
> Stefaan Thijs.
>
> - These have been useful and interesting discussions
> relevant to our shared objectives of reconnecting Europe
> with the citizen, in the context of Europe's shared
> values and principles, concluded Rosie Winterton.
>
> The five invited Member States were represented by
> Ms.Ulla Schmidt, Minister for Health and Social Security
> (Germany); Mr. António Correia de Campos, Minister of
> Health (Portugal); Ms. Elena Salgado, Minister for Health
> and Consumer Affairs (Spain); Ms. Rosie Winterton,
> Minister of State (UK) and Mr. Stefaan Thijs, Political
> Advisor to Mr. Rudy DeMotte (Belgium).
>
>
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Alex Scott-Samuel
EQUAL (Equity in Health Research and Development Unit)
Division of Public Health
University of Liverpool
Whelan Building
Quadrangle
Liverpool
L69 3GB
Tel (+44)151-794-5569
Fax (+44)151-794-5588
http://pcwww.liv.ac.uk/~alexss
e-mail [log in to unmask]
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