Migrants must pay more for treatment on NHS
pharmafile | July 16, 2014 | News story | Medical Communications, Sales and Marketing | NHS, health tourism, migrants
Non-EU citizens will soon have to pay 150% of the cost of treatment on the NHS under new plans announced by the Department of Health.
The UK government says it plans to save the NHS up to £500 million a year by recovering costs from treating foreign tourists and migrants, and prevent so called ‘health tourism’.
Currently, visitors to the UK can get free NHS care almost immediately, an arrangement which some say has led to people abusing the system. Under the new plans however, a procedure which previously would have been charged at £100 will now cost a non-resident £150.
UK health secretary Jeremy Hunt says: “We have no problem with international visitors using the NHS as long as they pay for it – just as British families do through their taxes.”
“These plans will help recoup up to £500 million a year, making sure the NHS is better resourced and more sustainable at a time when doctors and nurses on the front line are working very hard.”
The government has ordered the NHS to clamp down on health tourists and financial sanctions will be put in place for NHS trusts that fail to identify and bill chargeable patients.
A clearer IT system and registration process will be also be introduced to identify patients from whom the government can recover costs from and “lessen the burden on busy staff”.
Concerns have been raised by the medical profession however, with Dr Mark Porter, chair of the British Medical Association council, arguing that it was not up to the NHS to act as ‘border patrol’, adding that at it may also deter sick patients from seeking treatment at a detriment to public health.
He warns that: Plans to fine hospitals who fail to recoup costs would see them punished twice over, to the detriment of other services.”
Eligibility for free NHS prescriptions, optical vouchers and subsidised dental treatment will also be tightened, according to the DH.
The new plan follows the announcement in June that the NHS would receive an extra 25% on top of the cost of every procedure for an EEA migrant or visitor with European Health Insurance card.
The charge for non-European Union members will come into effect from spring 2015.
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