Legal challenges regarding telemedicine services in the European Union

Abstract

Telemedicine can help increase accessibility to healthcare for patients living in remote geographical areas, allow patients with chronic diseases to be monitored at home and involve patients in the management of their own healthcare. However, despite the potential benefits identified and the potential for growth of the telemedicine market, the use of telemedicine applications in everyday medicine is still relatively low. One of the reasons for this situation is the lack of legal clarity. This chapter analyses several problematic legal aspects in the provision of cross-border telemedicine services in the European Union (EU). These include: licensing, accreditation and registration of health professionals providing telemedicine services; reimbursement of costs for telemedicine services; liability; personal data protection; conflict of jurisdictions and conflict of laws.