Legislation, regulations and resolutions in the European Union (EU) and the Council of Europe may influence the professional practice of CAM, whether practised by a provider with or without accreditation. Europe-wide legislation may also affect the conditions under which patients are receiving CAM treatments in Europe.
The situation is however complex and lacks harmonization. For example, the EU Treaties have repeatedly established that health policy is a national responsibility of the member states. Nevertheless, two EU Directives can potentially influence national legislation of EU Member States regarding CAM practices, treatments and patients’ rights and safety:
- The “Professional Qualifications Directive” 2005/36/EC of 7 September 2005 on the recognition of professional qualifications.
- The “Patient Rights Directive” 2011/24/EU of 9 March 2011, on the application of patients' rights in cross-border healthcare.
To address this complex topic, three comprehensive reports were produced as part of the EU-funded CAMbrella project. NAFKAM was a partner in the CAMbrella project and assessed the legal and regulatory status of CAM across Europe:
- CAM regulations in European countries
- Regulation of herbal and homeopathic medicinal products
- CAM regulations in EU/EFTA/EEA
These reports form the basis of the information provided on the CAM Regulation website. The country-specific status has been described using publicly available legal and regulatory documents supplemented by personal visits by NAFKAM employees to a purposive sample of countries.
The status regarding regulation of CAM medicinal products and the EU-wide regulation of CAM has been described using publicly available legal and regulatory documents only. NAFKAM updates the website as and when new information about regulation becomes available.
