Accessto health care has also gradually appeared on the EU agenda in the last twenty years due to concerns about the social nature of Europe and the growing financial burden on healthcare systems because of ageing in particular. Even though national governments continued to emphasize their responsibilities regarding the organization and financing of their healthcare systems, they asked the European Commission to foster mutual learning and to share best practices on how to avoid the negative effects of the burgeoning healthcare costs while enhancing social inclusion through health improving policies. In this way,a general right of access has become also part of soft law arrangements