B. whereas the fundamental values of the EU should be respected even in a crisis situation and access to care, healthcare and social assistance should be seen as a basic right for all in the EU; whereas on the contrary, health, care and social services have been cut in the majority of Member States as a consequence of the implementation of austerity policies, thus undermining universal access and the quality of services;

AJ. whereas poverty, inadequate education and a lower level of social integration result in poor health outcomes; whereas the main barriers to healthcare for vulnerable groups are lack of knowledge and understanding of the health system, administrative problems, lack of knowledge regarding disease prevention, and lack of physical access to services;

6. Considers that many of the short-term cost-reduction measures currently being implemented, such as the introduction of up-front access to healthcare fees, higher out-of- pocket expenditure or exclusion from access to care of vulnerable groups, have not been fully assessed for their wider social and economic consequences or potentially discriminatory effects and long-term implications, including dangers to public health and possible consequences for life expectancy; underlines the fact that such measures have disproportionate negat ...[+++]ive impacts on vulnerable groups;

103. Welcomes the Commission’s proposals for facilitating access to crossborder health care; urges the Commission and the Member States to ensure the swift and effective implementation of Directive 2011/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2011 on the application of patients’ rights in crossborder health care, taking due account of the principles of universality, access to quality care, equity and solidarity; calls on the Commission and the Member States, in addition, to continue working towards the target of widespread deployment of telemedicine and e-health services by 2020; supports, furthermore, the pilot ...[+++] projects aimed at ensuring EU citizens secure online access to their patient data and interoperability of patient records, thus providing patients with continuity of care;

11. Welcomes the Commission’s proposals to facilitate better access to cross-border healthcare so as to guarantee peace of mind and quality care to citizens located outside their Member State; urges the Commission and the Member States to ensure a swift and effective implementation of Directive 2011/24/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 March 2011 on the application of patients’ rights in cross-border healthcare, taking due account of the principles of universality, access to good quality care, equity and solidarity; calls further on the Commission and the Member States to continue working towards the target of wides ...[+++]pread deployment of telemedicine and e-health services by 2020 and, furthermore, supports the pilot projects aimed at granting EU citizens secure online access to their patient data and ensuring interoperability of patient records, thus providing patients with continuity of care;

These should include the impact on access to healthcare and on its quality, assessments of cost benefits and productivity gains, as well as examples of addressing liability in telemedicine services, reimbursement schemes, and accreditation of e-Health products and services.