EUI Employee Union’s Position on SSN / TS

Your nationality and your employer should not determine nor endanger your right to health care!

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La tua nazionalità e il tuo datore di lavoro non possono né determinare né limitare il tuo dirito alla salute!

Complete original version publicly available since November 2022. This slightly shortened revised version has been presented at the EUI Townhall on 12 May 2023

 

We fight for:

• active and retired EUI personnel and their families to have guaranteed health protection through the Italian National Healthcare System (SSN) as for all other European Union citizens resident in Italy;
• all Italian and non-Italian citizens/colleagues resident in Italy must have obligatory (i.e. free) access to the National Healthcare System and the Italian card valid as European health card (Tessera Europea Assicurazione Malattia – TEAM) in all EU countries.

 

We are against:

• the proposed new Italian health card (Tessera Sanitaria Asteriscata ‘*’) – valid only on the Italian territory – because it deprives both Italian and non-Italian colleagues of their constitutional rights, i.e. giving less to all! We will continue to oppose such an agreement and we will take every further available action against its entry into force.

 

We urge:

• the EUI to become involved in the negotiations with the Italian authorities (Ministry and Tuscany Region) and to involve the social parts in this dialogue;
• the European Commission to transparently share the opinion of the EC legal office concerning JSIS coverage and access to SSN;
• the text of any revised version of the Draft Agreement being proposed to be openly shared!

 

We believe that:

• Solutions should be sought and found also for colleagues who are not resident in Italy, including non-EU citizens
• TS* would be advantageous only for colleagues who are not resident in Italy
• The agreement does not respect art. 32 of the Italian constitution, and in particular the equity principle ‘All citizens must be guaranteed equal access in relation to equal health needs.’ Depriving Italian citizens and all those who currently enjoy obligatory (free) access to the SSN of a constitutional right should not be considered.
• JSIS acts as a private health insurance, which decides on its reimbursement schemes with ceilings and may refuse to pay for medical care that their consultants deem unnecessary.
• JSIS health insurance is not comparable to a public national health system such as the SSN.
• JSIS should be considered for what it is: an employment benefit, and it is described as such in our statute.
• The PMO/EC cannot negotiate with the Italian State on behalf of Italian and non-Italian staff without the consent and information of the staff! The EUI and other EU organizations are our employers, not our political representatives towards the national states. We signed an employment contract, we did not vote them to decide for our social rights with the State!
• If the agreement were signed, we should have the possibility to decide whether to keep JSIS or the SSN coverage as primary health coverage!

 

United together we are stronger than standing alone