Therapy freedom
Therapy freedom is the freedom of physicians to apply whichever therapy their medical knowledge makes them believe to be appropriate.[1] That often means:
- Physician have the legal right to prescribe an unlicensed drug.[citation needed]
- A health insurance company is obliged to pay for the treatment, regardless of whether or not it considers the treatment to be appropriate.[2]
Therapy freedom, however, is limited to cases of no treatment existing that is both well-established and more efficacious.
Therapy freedom is established in Germany, where it is known as Therapiefreiheit.
References
- ^ Schepers, R (2005). "The Belgian medical profession since the 1980s: dominance and decline". In Larkin, G; Saks, M; et al. (eds.). Health Professions and the State in Europe. Taylor & Francis. p. 94. ISBN 9781134844524. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
- ^ Wienke, A (September 2001). "Therapiefreiheit contra Wirtschaftlichkeitsgebot" [Therapeutic freedom versus scientific mandatory cost saving]. HNO (in German). 49 (9). Berlin: Springer Verlag: 762–3. doi:10.1007/s001060170051. PMID 11593781. Retrieved 17 February 2024.