EUROPEAN COMMISSIONEMPL/00280/09 - EN
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
minutes – 17.10.2008
ADVISORY COMMITTEE
ON SOCIAL SECURITY FOR MIGRANT WORKERS
Minutes of the 39th meeting
Brussels, 17 October 2008
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Adoption of the agenda
2. Approval of the minutes of the 38th meeting
3. The revised Social Agenda – developments in the social policy field
4. Report by the Chair of the Advisory Committee on changes to Community legislation which have been made or which are in progress
5.Report by the Chair of the Administrative Commission on Social Security for Migrant Workers (CASSTM) on the work of the CASSTM
6.Report on the activities of the Technical Commission on Data Processing
7.Report addressed to the Advisory Committee on social security for migrant workers concerning judgements delivered by the Court of Justice of the European Communities during the 2006-2007 legal year
8.Presentation of the proposal for a Directive on the application of patients' rights in cross-border healthcare
9.trESS (training and reporting on European Social Security): findings of the European report 2007, activities and recent developments
10.New forms of mobility – information on new developments
11.Monitoring of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)
12.Other business
List of participants
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Adoption of the agenda
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1.Adoption of the agenda
The Chair, Mr Jackie Morin,started by presenting himself. As the new head of Unit EMPL.E.3, he welcomed this first opportunity to work more closely together with the members of the Advisory Committee. He underlined the important role of the Advisory Committee in the discussion on coordination of social security in particular in this time of forthcoming legislative changes and he welcomed ideas from the social partners on the further development of this specific and important field of social policy.
The agenda was adopted.
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SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Approval of the minutes of the 38th meeting
2. Approval of the minutes of the 38th meeting
- Note SS.TM. 02/07
All language versions of the minutes were approved.
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SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
The revised Social Agenda – developments in the social policy field
3.The revised Social Agenda – developments in the social policy field
The Chair gave a presentation of the revised social Agenda which was adopted by the Commission on 2 July 2008. This revised social Agenda is based on an integrated approach which involved different services in the Commission. This has resulted in a more coherent approach in the development of European social policy. The Chair explained in more detail in which specific fields the Commission has committed itself to undertake action in the next years.
The ETUC representativeregretted that in the social package the role of the social partners has not been mentioned explicitly. She expressed her disappointment on the social package since it did not explicitly focus on social policy and since it covers a period only until the end of 2009; reference was made to the reaction which ETUC prepared to this revised social agenda. She said that ETUC considers the social package as an intermediate step and they would welcome further actions and strategies from the Commission on post-Lisbon and on the difficult challenges that lie ahead in the decades to come.
The Portuguese Trade Unions' representative agreed that the social issues covered by this social package were very divers and he deplored that the package had not tackled the social challenges arising from the deregulation of the national labour markets, which already can be seen in countries such as Spain and Portugal. There is an immediate need to develop social policy that protects the social rights and well-being of the workers affected bythis deregulation. He feared that if the 'Services Directive' would become reality, this would have negative effects in some regional areas.
The Chair took note of these remarks and indicated that some impetus to the discussion could be given through the further development of rules of coordination of the national social security schemes.
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Report by the Chair of the Advisory Committee on changes to Community legislation which have been made or which are in progress
4.Report by the Chair of the Advisory Committee on changes to Community legislation which have been made or which are in progress
- Note SS.TM.03/08
The Secretariat presented changes to Community legislation as outlined in note 03/08 dividing the changes into three main groups:
a)Regulations adopted:
Regulation 592/2008 concerning miscellaneous amendments to Regulation 1408/71 and Commission Regulation 101/2008 amending the annexes of Regulation 574/72 have been adopted in 2008.
b)Proposals for Regulations being examined – The negotiations in Council on the Regulation Implementing Regulation 883/2004are being finalised and by mid December 2008 the Council's Common Position will be expected. The European Parliament is expected to finish its second reading during the plenary session in April 2009.
Simultaneously, the Proposal on entries to Annexes of Regulation 883/2004 is being discussed and the Council's Common Position is expected as well at the end of 2008 and the European Parliament should also finish its second reading during the plenary session in April 2009.
After having adopted these new Regulations, training for the institutions will take place. The new Regulationswill become applicable in 2010. The building up of the new system on electronic data exchange (EESSI) is in progress and itis expected to be finalised by 2010. By mid 2012, it is expected that all Member States will use this new system of electronic data exchange.
The Proposal for a Council Regulation extending the provisions of Regulation 883/2004 to third countries nationals which will replace the current Regulation 859/2003 requires no co-decision but only consultation of the European Parliament and it should be negotiated by the legislator during the Czech Presidency.
With regard to Association Agreementsand its provisions on social security coordination, the Commission adopted in December 2007 the package of six proposals for Association Council decisions concerning Agreements with Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Croatia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Israel.
c)Proposals under preparation – the Proposal for a Commission Regulation to up to date annexes of Regulation 574/72 will be presented by the end of 2008.
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SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Report by the Chair of the Administrative Commission on Social Security for Migrant Workers (CASSTM) on the work of the CASSTM
5.Report by the Chair of the Administrative Commission on Social Security for Migrant Workers (CASSTM) on the work of the CASSTM
- Note SS.TM. 04/08
The Chair of the Administrative Commission, Mr Jean-Claude Fillon, informed the Advisory Committee about the activities of the Administrative Commission on Social Security for Migrant Workers (CASSTM) during the period from October 2007 to June 2008 (i.e. the 306nd to the 309th meetings), covering the work under the Portuguese and Slovenian Presidencies.
The Chair gave an overview on the activities of the past 12 months, referring to points 1 to 3 of the above mentioned document, i.e. the matters related to the preparation for the application of the new Regulations (1), improvement of working methods of the Administrative Commission (2), and other major issues dealt with by the Administrative Commission during the reference period (3).
He referred in particular to the high number of actions needed at the level of the Administrative Commission with regard to the application of Regulation 883/2004 and its new Implementing Regulation, actions related to the introduction of the electronic data exchange and revision of current Decisions and Recommendations of the Administrative Commission.
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Report on the activities of the Technical Commission on Data Processing
6.Report on the activities of the Technical Commission on Data Processing
- Note SS.TM. 05/08
The Chair of the Technical Commission, Mr Jean-Claude Fillon, made reference to note SS.TM. 05/08. He underlined the report's main point which is the preparation of the electronic exchange.
In order to speed up the decision making process, the Task Force had been involved in preparing recommendations that were submitted to joint meetings of the Administrative and the Technical Commissions for discussion and approval.
The preparatory work carried out so far allowed the Commission to prepare a call-for-tender. As the new contract started, there would be again a need for decisions speedily taken.
Meanwhile, the Task Force, the ad-hoc-groups and the Secretariat continued working on business and data flows.
Work on the transitional measures had started and would continue. He also underlined the three functions of the Master Directory, namely as the required annexe to the Implementing Regulation, as tool for social security institutions to exchange the necessary information and as means to inform the citizens about the institutions.
He emphasized that the social partners may find this last function of particular importance.
He announced that in November 2008 a conference on avoiding fraud and error in the field of social security coordination will take place in Paris, organised by the French Presidency.
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Report addressed to the Advisory Committee on social security for migrant workers concerning judgements delivered by the Court of Justice of the European Communities during the 2007-2008 legal year
7.Report addressed to the Advisory Committee on social security for migrant workers concerning judgements delivered by the Court of Justice of the European Communities during the 2007-2008 legal year
- Note SS.TM. 06/08
The representative of the legal service, Mr Viktor Kreuschitz, presented the judgments delivered by the Court of Justice of the European Communities in the most important cases in 2007-2008.
1. JUDGMENTS CONCERNING REGULATION 1612/68 AND DIRECTIVE 2004/38
C-291/05 Eind
C-33/07 Jipa
C-127/08 Metock u.a
2. JUDGMENTS CONCERNING REGULATION 1408/71
C-299/05, Commission vs. Council and European Parliament
Joint cases: C-396/05 Habelt, C-419/05 Möser and C-450/05 Wachter
C-507/06 Klöppel
C-212/06 French Community Government vs. Flemish Government
C-331/06 Chuck
C-103/06 Derouin
C-352/06 Bosmann
C-228/07 Petersen
3. JUDGMENTS CONCERNING ARTICLE 39 OF THE EC TREATY
C-276/07 Nancy Delay
C-94/07 Raccanelli
4. JUDGMENTS CONCERNING AGREEMENT WITH TURKEY
C-349/06 Polat
C-453/07 Hakan Er
The Chair thanked the Member of the Legal Service for his detailed, clear and useful written and oral contributions.
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Presentation of the proposal for a Directive on the application of patients' rights in cross-border healthcare
8.Presentation of the proposal for a Directive on the application of patients' rights in cross-border healthcare
The representative of DG SANCO, Ms Nathalie CHAZE, presented the Commission's Proposalfor a Directive on the application of patients' rights in cross-border healthcare.
The ETUC representative regretted that this Proposal is inspired by an Internal Market approach which promotes to much the idea of consumption while neglecting the aspect that receiving of health care is a fundamental right. She said that it would have been preferable to have one instrument within Regulation 1408/71.
The Austrian Trade Unions' representative wondered why the issue of access to health care abroad is not dealt with by one single legal instrument, namely by Regulation 1408/71. He took the view that the provisions concerning the reimbursement of costs of health care received abroad lack transparency. He pointed out that the creation of centres of reference is positive but he wondered what happens in case of medical error.
The German Trade Unions' representative agreed with the comments of the Austrian Trade Unions representative and he pointed out that that the Proposal leads to two-tier health care as not everybody can afford to advance the costs of health treatment abroad.
The Dutch Employers representativeemphasised that they are in favour of cross border health care. However, this Proposal is not a final position and it goes beyond of what had been stated in the relevant case law of the European Court of Justice so the principle of proportionality has not been respected.
The Austrian Employers representative took the view that the Proposal is an excellent idea since it reflects case law of the European Court of Justice. However, the relationship between Regulation 1408/71 and this Proposal remains open and attention should be paid to separate good health care providers from the bad ones.
In reply to questions raised, the DG Sanco's representative pointed out that the MemberState concerned reimburses the costs of the provided health treatment at its own tariffs. The costs of transport will only be reimbursed if the legislation of the competent Member States provides for such reimbursement. This system reflects the balance between the patient's rights and the principle of solidarity, ie the social security scheme which has to reimburse the costs of the health treatment obtained abroad. She stressed that the proposal does not distinguish between private and public
health care sector as the assumption of costs is made on the basis of the tariffs of the competent MemberState. As regards medical errors, the proposal clarifies the responsibility of each MemberState in order to avoid conflicts.
The representative of DG EMPL emphasised that DG EMPL cooperates closely with DG SANCO to ensure that Regulation 1408/71 and the proposal are complementary. With regard to information of citizens, there will be a revised and more citizen friendly Commission's website (Europa) and the website of Unit EMPL.E.3 contains also much information on cross border healthcare.
The French government representativesaid that the text of the Proposal originated in the case law of the European Court of Justice which had been imposed on the Commission and on Member States. He stated that the proposal contains 3 main topics: (1) reimbursement of the cost of health care obtained abroad, (2) cooperation and (3) security. He added that it would have been preferable to have 2 separate proposals, one which codifies the case law of the European Court of Justice and one which deals with the other issues.
The Chair concluded that both instruments (Regulation and the proposal) should be complementary and he emphasised the importance of spreading of information.
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
trESS (training and reporting on European Social Security): findings of the European report 2007, activities and recent developments
9.trESS (training and reporting on European Social Security): findings of the European report 2007, activities and recent developments
The trESS project manager, Mr Michael Coucheir, presented the trESS project and its developments. TrESS is a project financed by DG EMPL and implemented by the University of Ghent. It has four main objectives: 1) building of networks, 2) transmission of knowledge, 3) reporting from the national level to the EU level, 4) legal analysis.
The project gathers peoplesuch as lawyers, judges, social partners and others having a link with coordination of social security schemes. The project manager admitted that the social partners are underrepresented and called for a broader participation of social partners in the national seminars.
TrESS organizes meetings on national level. These meetings are organized on regular basis in different European countries and they are usually attended by 20 to 60 people.
Another valuable platform of the project is its website. The trESS website contains the contactdatabase and serves as a networking tool. Additionally, the e-newsletter is published on the website. The website contains also an e-learning tool, Regulations 1408/71 and 572/74 including corresponding ECJ case law and a database on national social security case law. He said that there will be soon a table comparing the provisions of the new Regulation 883/2004 with those of Regulation 1408/71.
Another activity of trESS is the preparation of the European Report. This report is based on national reports and on reports of the individual seminars. The European Report's objective is to provide information on problems concerning the application of coordination rules at national level as well as to anticipate the trends and prospective of developments in the social security law. The 2007 Report followedthe structure of the Regulation and some topics are highlighted, namely social developments and modification of traditional family model and interference with other EU law domains. The 2008 report will be differently structured and will contain a larger part on cross-cutting issues.
The trESS project provides also for a think-tank which prepares the thematic reports. Lately, the think-tank reflected on new forms of mobility and on the articulation between the Coordination Regulations and the Residence Directive 2004/38.
At the end of the presentation, the project structure was presented together with the contact details. The project manager asked the delegates to spread the information on this project.
The Chair supported the project manager's request for broad dissemination of information on the project.
SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
New forms of mobility–information on new developments
10.New forms of mobility – information on new developments
The Secretariat provided a short update concerning the actions taken since 2007 to identify the issues on social security coordination in response to the changed needs of new patterns of mobility.
In October 2007, the Administrative Commission adopted a number of recommendations in this field. Following that, in December 2007, the Commission adopted the Communication "Mobility, an instrument for more and better jobs: The European Job Mobility Action Plan (2007-2010)" (see COM (2007) 773 (final)). The Communication contains, inter alia, a number of actions to be taken to remove the remaining obstacles to mobility, and in particular in relation to new patterns of mobility.
One of the actions identified is a systematic investigation on the scope and characteristics of the new mobility patterns, which is currently being conducted by a think-tank established within the trESS network (training and reporting on European Social Security). A first report is foreseen for the end of 2008. The report will be one of the elements on which the Commission will decide in the second half of 2009, whether it is necessary to adapt Community legislation and/or related administrative practices in order to better facilitate the modern migrant worker.
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SS.TM. 02/0839th meeting of the Advisory Committee
Monitoring of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)
11.Monitoring of the European Health Insurance Card (EHIC)