Luxembourg, 17/03/2004 (Agence Europe) - The Sixth Chamber of the European Court of Justice, presided by President of the Court, Vassilios Skouris, has ruled against France, for imposing a condition which is illegal in European law on medical analysis laboratories established in another Member State but hoping to carry out their activities in France. The Court believes that France is not entitled to oblige bio-medical laboratories established in other Member States to have their headquarters on French territory to be authorised to function. This condition runs counter to the principle of freedom to provide services in the EU. The Court also states that France is impeding the freedom of activity for laboratories of other Member States by excluding any refund, by health insurance providers, of costs for medical analyses carried out by these same laboratories.
The European Commission initiated this procedure after a complaint by a German laboratory.
The European judges indicate that the condition of being headquartered in France goes beyond the requirement for the objective of protection of public health referred to by Paris. Instead of requiring French headquarters and excluding all cross-border service provision, France may require laboratories to have authorisation to carry out activities in France; except if this authorisation duplicates that already obtained to carry out activities in the lab's country of origin, points out the Court, which cited earlier case law.
The French government said that it was impossible to judge the level of checks existing in the other Member States, as it was unaware of the quality criteria and check modalities in force in these States. The Court's response was that in granting the administrative authority, inviting labs established in another Member State to submit the appropriate information, the French authorities would become aware of the criteria and conditions imposed by the law of the Member State where the laboratory is established. The French authorities can always withdraw the licence at a later date, as they can in the case of any lab operating on French territory which does not respect the conditions imposed by French legislation, said the Court.
On the refusal by health insurers to cover the costs of analysis by laboratories of other Member States, the Court indicates that this exceeds what is objectively necessary to protect public health.