October 20, 2006
Freedom of Movement - in Health and Death
This week's CNE Health blog is about the consultation leading up to the upcoming EU health services directive, defining what medical services patients have a right to, quality of care and who will pay for it.
Meanwhile, Waldemar Ingdahl and Daniel Johanson defends freedom of choice in postmortem treatment (article in Swedish). Just as people no longer remain static with their illnesses and become "health tourists", people are less and less agreeing with the limiting Swedish rules for disposal of bodies. Cryonics is a good example: if you want to suspend yourself you better make sure you travel before death to a cryonics firm (and you better have all the paperwork in order).
The EU has great potential in allowing the free flow of goods, people and services. It doesn't need identical rules, just the option of going where the rules work - whether you are alive, ill or (temporarily) dead.
Posted by Anders3 at October 20, 2006 03:18 AM