Colm Burke MEP tackles problem of rogue doctors struck off the medical register in one member state of the EU, but who move elsewhere to practice

The problem of so-called rogue doctors - medical professionals who have been struck off the medical register in one member state of the EU, but who move elsewhere to practice - is being addressed by FG MEP Colm Burke in the European Parliament as co-author of the Cross-Border Healthcare report for the European Parliament's Internal Market Committee. Thankfully an integrated approach to this problem has begun to evolve.

Colm Burke states:

Addressing this crisis has been a high priority of mine since I became a Member of the European Parliament in 2007 and I have sought put an end to this problem by amending the Cross-border Healthcare Directive. This can be achieved by setting up an EU-wide medical registry, to prevent dodgy doctors and quacks from unscrupulously crossing borders to practice illegally. My amendment states in clear terms how this can be achieved, it is through focused legislative action at the EU level that we can tackle this crisis.

My amendment reads "There shall be an EU register of professional medical practitioners who have been struck off the medical register or are subject to restrictions or disciplinary procedures by the relevant authorities of any Member State in the EU." I have secured enough backing in the European Parliament to support this measure. This amendment should be voted through in May, and then we can start compiling an EU register of struck off doctors, so that Irish patients are not put at risk by being treated by these unscrupulous operators from other countries.