Official Journal of the European Union

C series

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C/2025/2519

12.5.2025

(Case C-181/25, Assessorato regionale della Salute)

(C/2025/2519)

Language of the case: Italian

Referring court

Parties to the main proceedings

Appellant: Autorità Garante della Concorrenza e del Mercato (AGCM)

Respondent: Assessorato Regionale della Salute

Questions referred

Does the exclusion of ‘healthcare services’ from the scope of Directive 2006/123/EC (1) have any effect on the full implementation of the principles of the protection of competition in the specific field of access of accredited private entities to the conclusion of contracts referred to in Article 8-quinquies of decreto legislativo n. 502 (Legislative Decree No 502) of 1992, pursuant to Article 3(3) TEU and Article 3(1)(b), Articles 106 and 116 and Article 117(1) TFEU?

If the answer to Question 1 is in the negative, is the so-called historical expenditure criterion used for allocating to accredited private enterprises the budget relating to the conclusion of individual contracts pursuant to Article 8-quinquies of Legislative Decree No 502 of 1992, when applied exclusively or predominantly or, in any event, in a preponderant way by the regional administration, contrary to Article 3(3) TEU and Article 3(1)(b), Articles 106 and 116 and Article 117(1) TFEU?

Do the provisions of Article 3(3) TEU, Article 3(1)(b), Articles 106 and 116 and Article 117(1) TFEU and, more generally, the principles of the protection of competition and the free market, preclude regional provisions which, as regards access to the market for healthcare provided by accredited private entities and financed by public funds, and, therefore, in respect of the first contract, provide for a fixed entry budget, predetermined by the regional administration and independently of assessments of the efficiency and capacity of the provider, the specific needs of the patients to be met, the location of the services on the territory, the number of staff and the technological equipment available to the provider?

If, in answering Question 3, it is considered that the establishment of a fixed entry budget is compatible with the provisions of Article 3(3) TEU and Article 3(1)(b), Articles 106 and 116 and Article 117(1) TFEU and, more generally, with the principles of the protection of competition and the free market, does that compatibility depend on the value of the entry budget predetermined by the regional administration, considered in absolute terms or in relation to the value of the budgets allocated to other accredited private entities already contracted and operating in the same sector or branch of specialisation?

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Directive 2006/123/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on services in the internal market (OJ 2006 L 376, p. 36).

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ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/C/2025/2519/oj

ISSN 1977-091X (electronic edition)

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