The European integration process and the application of the principle
of free movement to new areas of social economic life are raising new
questions. One of these questions is the potential mobility of patient
s within the European Union (EU). Under a commission from the Director
ate General V of the European Commission, the authors conducted a stud
y of this topic in 1991. The normative framework used in this study is
again used here to analyse in depth the types of cross-border care av
ailable under social protection. In this paper the main results of thi
s study are summarized and, where possible, updated. In the first part
of the paper the historical development of the European cross-border
care regulatory system is charted. A second part deals with the macro-
analysis of patient flows. In the final part of the paper, some conclu
sions are drawn as to the desirable development of the EU policy with
respect to cross-border care (de)regulation.