EU legislation established a broad set of patients' rights with regard to accessing health services abroad. However, currently much of the potential of these provisions in increasing patient mobility remains unused. Due to low patient awareness, shortcomings in information provision and existing regulatory and procedural barriers, patients are limited in their possibilities to benefit from seeking cross-border healthcare. As recommended in previous studies, elimination of existing barriers in some Member States (MSs), as well as more uniform practice of information provision in line with the requirements under Directive 2011/24/EU, is required. These improvements are key in providing citizens with more equal opportunities to exercise their rights to planned treatment abroad. Against this background, the overall objective of this study was to propose recommendations for improving the current level of information provision to patients in cross-border healthcare. To that end, the study aimed to: Identify the legal information requirements, as well as the needs of patients, for the National Contact Points (NCPs) (of the MS of treatment and of the MS of affiliation where the patient is normally insured) and for healthcare providers who provide cross-border services; and to Study and assess the status quo of current information provision by NCPs, as well as the degree of evolution since previous studies undertook similar performance measurement exercises. To achieve these two aims, we used a combination of research methods, including a literature review, an analysis of legal texts, a website analysis, a pseudo-patient investigation, and surveys among NCPs and patients. This study went beyond the existing literature by not only mapping the status quo, but subsequently also developing a toolbox and training material for the NCPs to improve the quality of information provision to patients on cross-border healthcare. More specifically, tools and training materials, as well as a set of Guiding Principles and indicators were developed in order to establish an NCP service that is in line with the requirements of Directive 2011/24/EU, that is more uniform, and that is patient-centred. This will contribute to high level information provision to patients. The draft results of the research activities were shared and discussed with the NCPs through bilateral exchanges and during an NCP workshop on March 8 2018 in Brussels. The Guiding Principles were shared with to the NCPs for a final round of consultation in June 2018.
