The OMC Processes in the Health Care Field: What Does Coordination Really Mean?

Abstract

More than fifteen years after the introduction of the Open Method of Coordination (OMC), it is necessary to assess the practical implementation of this tool. It is a subject of major interest that has inspired numerous studies in the framework of the Lisbon Strategy, but the attention focused on the OMC has diminished during the past few years, particularly with the deepening of the economic governance of the EU. This trend needs to be addressed in order to understand the actual meaning of the OMC and its relationship to the main features of EU law. The policy field of public health is an appropriate approach for a retrospective assessment of the OMC. Originally conceived as a single method, designed to promote flexible convergence on general objectives concerning the sustainability and quality of care, policy coordination in the health care field has gradually become more complex. It has now become more appropriate to consider several processes of coordination, each one with its own rationale, rather than a single method which can be qualified as an “OMC”. This Article discusses this evolution.