The Commission is referring Greece to the Court of Justice of the European Union due to faulty implementation of EU legislation on late payments to hospital suppliers.
In particular, as underlined in the relevant announcement, Greece is referred “because it does not correctly apply the rules of the Directive on late payments (Directive 2011/7/EU)”.
According to the Commission’s announcement, “payment delays negatively affect businesses, as they reduce their liquidity, prevent their growth, hinder their resilience and potentially undermine their efforts to become greener and more digital.”
The Late Payments Directive obliges public authorities to pay their invoices within 30 days (or 60 days for health authorities). Public authorities, by meeting these payment deadlines, set an example to combat the late payment mentality.
“These hospitals do not honor their obligation to pay their debts promptly when suppliers agree to waive their rights to interest, in violation of established case law. In November 2023 the Commission had already referred Greece to the Court of Justice of the EU for another late payment case, which concerned excessive late payments by Greek public hospitals (INFR(2019)2298). Payment delays by public hospitals hamper the competitiveness and resilience of businesses operating in the health sector, especially SMEs. During the COVID-19 pandemic, these businesses played a key role in quickly resupplying hospitals, helping them stay operational,” the statement said.
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Tags: Commission sending Greece European Court Justice delays hospital supplier payments
