The truth is that we are very unlikely to see more than a trickle of patients going to other Member States; that the incentive to avoid even this by raising the standards of local services is a likely and beneficial outcome; and that the concept of money following patients is not a bad one, if managed sensibly, as many governments already do in managing the transfer of patients to other health districts, to the voluntary and private sector and by bilateral agreement with hospitals in other countries to reduce waiting lists.
The truth is that we are very unlikely to see more than a trickle of patients going to other Member States; that the incentive to avoid even this by raising the standards of local services is a likely and beneficial outcome; and that the concept of money following patients is not a bad one, if managed sensibly, as many governments already do in managing the transfer of patients to other health districts, to the voluntary and private sector and by bilateral agreement with hospitals in other countries to reduce waiting lists.