EXPLAINER: OVERSEAS PATIENTS OVERSEAS PATIENTS
NHS trusts in England have a legal responsibility to recover the cost of treatment from patients who are not resident in this country. Terence Facey, overseas patient liaison officer and star of series one, episode four of the BBC Two documentary Hospital, explains how and when overseas visitors are asked to pay for care.
WHAT DOES THE OVERSEAS OFFICE DO?
We monitor the daily admissions list from A&E and determine which patients potentially need to pay for their treatment, and who we should interview as a result. We interview patients on the wards and in outpatient clinics, and discuss with them how much their NHS care will cost and agree a deposit for patients who do need to pay. We also work with healthcare insurers. Should a patient fall ill on holiday often their insurance will cover the cost of care, but if they don’t have insurance, patients have to pay themselves.
HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY IF A PATIENT NEEDS TO PAY FOR THEIR CARE?
Generally through the interview process but there is certain information and documentation that patients need to provide to confirm if they are eligible for free NHS care.
AN OVERSEAS PATIENT IS… A patient who is not legally resident in the UK and therefore needs to pay for their care. You can be a British national and considered an overseas patient because you live outside the country. However, all care provided in A&E is currently free for overseas visitors and there are certain medical conditions, like TB that all patients receive free care for.
WHO IS ELIGIBLE FOR FREE NHS TREATMENT? If you are resident in the UK and can prove your right to live here, you are
Winter 2017/2018
entitled to receive all medical treatment free of charge.
Residents of the European Economic Area (EEA) can access free medical treatment here under the European Health Insurance Card scheme (EHIC) as long as they hold a valid card. If a European national does not have a card and can’t get a card, they are considered ‘chargeable’ and personally liable for the cost of their treatment.
Free NHS treatment is also available to UK Government employees, war pensioners and certain UK nationals
with reciprocal healthcare agreements. Asylum seekers with current and active asylum claims with the home office, also receive free treatment while their claim is being processed.
Since 23 October 2017 it is a legal requirement that all patients not eligible for free NHS treatment pay the estimated full cost of their care up front and in full before any treatment begins. This means if a clinician determines a patient does not need urgent care and the treatment is elective, they will be asked to pay.
WHAT ABOUT PEOPLE WORKING OR STUDYING IN THE UK? Individuals on a student visa longer than six months, a short-term temporary visa, or a family visit visa pay an NHS surcharge. For students it’s £150 for a year. For residency visas and working visas it’s £200 per year. The surcharge is a condition of the visa being issued and needs to be paid beforehand. We can check the payment status using a patient’s NHS number. Once paid, individuals are entitled to free medical treatment to the same degree as NHS patients, except in relation to fertility treatment.
WHAT ABOUT VISITORS TO THE UK?
Visitors to the UK are not residents therefore need to pay for NHS treatment unless they meet the conditions of one of the exclusions to this policy.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Contact
imperial.overseas.office@
nhs.net or visit The Source:
http://source/overseasvisitors/
index.htm
Pulse/ 19
CREDIT: BBC TWO
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