A personal comment on the French NO

HCP has the last month made a survey in several EU countries on the subject of healthcare information. It was hard to get anyone to answer questions in France. Mostly people hang up before we had the chance to explain the purpose of the survey with the motivation that they had already decided to vote NO.  And now it's all over the news. The NO. Not from the usual suspects up north but from France.

Even though it was a far from perfect proposal for a constitution the French NO does not seem to be about that. When you listen to the interview in media it seems clear that this was the left that said no to market and competition. That in spite of all the precautions that have been taken by the politicians lately as for example putting the Service Directive on hold. It seems like both politicians and voters have now realized what they gotten from the peace project EU started as. That the goal might have been peace but that the method was trade.

A sector most people say are the last one where trade should be allowed in is the healthcare sector. But even if the EU has made the invisible hand a bit more free and effective its still not a EU construction. And EU will not be able to stop it either.
For me, being interested in politic its exciting to speculate what the leaderships of the EU will do the 16th and 17th of June. I'm most sure they will continue their pet project to give us peace and prosperity.

For the rest it's business as usual. The globalization continues. Internet will continue to open borders and people will find it easier to hunt for knowledge, services and products without geographical restrictions

They will find out what is the best possible healthcare for them and then they use that knowledge to ensure they get it. The EU will continue to help by the old political decisions and then the courts enforcement of them. The freedom of movement and the internal market principles are not in the bin because of the NO.

And more and more people will get better healthcare as a result of that.

The two basic principles of the European Union - the freedom of movement and the internal market - are alive and kicking, no matter the NO.

Kajsa Wilhelmsson
Director, European Affairs
Health Consumer Powerhouse