New migrants coming to the UK for more than six months will face a new levy of hundreds of pounds for access to health care, the Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt has announced. This could be fees up to £1,000 in their first five years.
The plans include an end free GP access to short term visitors, moving towards a fee system similar to that in place at hospitals. EU citizens will still access health care free of charge, and no one will be denied emergency care.
Hunt will also “detail plans of a registration and tracking system possibly linked to the NHS number to check the immigration status of new patients who register at a GP surgery for the first time,” according to the Guardian.
These upfront fees being levied on migrants, such as international students, will be on top of already very high visa fees, which average £500, for anyone coming from outside the European Economic Area for more than six months.
The plans have already attracted criticism from healthcare professionals and campaigners, who warn of health risks to British citizens and residents if patients with HIV or tuberculosis are unable to access health care. Hunt says the new restrictions will not apply to these cases.
The plans will go out to consultation – but only for six weeks, something the Department says is not a ‘rush’ to push plans through. They also plan to conduct and publish an audit of the cost to the British taxpayer of treating migrants, according to the Guardian.
These announcements have led to further claims that Britain is ‘closed for business’ and concerns that with such stringent fees, British universities and companies will be hamstrung in an effort to attract the best and brightest.
There are also potential human rights implications to plans such as these, particularly in the International Covenant on Social and Economic Rights, and its General Comment 14 (2000) which specifically addressed the right to access health care.
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