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Harmonising health standards

The European Union (EU) has unveiled plans for a new regulation to increase organ donation and transplants across the 27 member states, as a part of the ongoing efforts to foster cross-border cooperation in health care in the context of the increasing mobility of patients and medical professionals within the EU. A specific recommendation among the latest proposals relates to the issue of organ donor cards with a view to raising public awareness of the critical life-saving role of organ donations. A Eurobarometer survey estimates that while on an average, 56 per cent of EU citizens are ready to donate organs, the proportion varies significantly among countries. Of no less a concern is the potential for illegal trafficking and the attendant ethical dilemmas and health safety issues in the states that have a shortage of organs. Figures show that at least ten people die in the EU daily for want of an organ replacement and the demand for transplants is more than twice the availability. Moreover, the possession of a donor card is seen as the surest way to ascertain readiness of benefactors, as national laws also vary between those that presume consent and others that require written proof of willingness. The European Commission further believes that the new measure will encourage the altruistic among citizens to commit themselves, and this in turn would win over the reluctant and boost the overall rate of donations across the continent.

Following the European Court's ruling that the core EU principles of free movement across member states apply to health services, EU citizens are now entitled to medical treatment outside their own countries. But community action in health care is evolving only gradually. Currently, common EU policy is limited to securing broad objectives of tackling collective threats to health, patient safety and adopting best practices. The reluctance to cede national autonomy in the formulation of health policy can be attributed to the apprehension that medicare delivery, essentially the state's responsibility, would be passed on to the private sector, once health services are integrated at the EU level. Another reason is that public health institutions in many European countries are regarded as strong symbols of post-war solidarity and national pride. The incremental nature of the unfolding process is perhaps the best recipe for high quality, affordable, and universal delivery of health services in the EU.

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