FREEDOM TO PROVIDE SERVICES : COURT ORDERS LUXEMBOURG TO REFUND MEDICAL EXAMINATION COSTS.

• Position: Brief article

The EU Court of Justice declared, on 27 January, that the fact that Luxembourg does not refund the costs of medical and biological analyses and examinations "carried out in another member state" represents a restriction on the freedom to provide services, as specified by Article 56 TFEU. The ruling (Case C-490/09) came in response to infringement proceedings launched by the European Commission in November 2007.

In Luxembourg, the social security system relies on an obligatory system concerning those receiving benefits, with beneficiaries of Luxembourg sickness benefit funds being mainly located in Luxembourg. The judgement thus concerns only medical service providers not bound by the Luxembourg sickness benefit funds, which are thus not refunded by its social security system. The regulation, therefore, would involve a differentiation in how health care is provided. The Commission cites...