§ Mr. Andrew TurnerTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) which categories of person, on the basis of age, marital status, duration of residence in UK, contribution record, immigration status, nationality and other characteristics, are eligible for(a) free emergency treatment in NHS hospitals, (b) free non-emergency treatment in NHS hospitals, (c) free treatment by NHS general medical practitioners, (d) free treatment by NHS dental practitioners and (e) NHS drug prescriptions; [7954]
(2) what powers he has to recover the cost of treatment under the NHS of persons ineligible for free treatment; [7955]
(3) how much was recovered, in the last year for which information is available, of the cost of treatment under the NHS of persons ineligible for free treatment; and how much is estimated to remain uncollected. [7956]
§ Mr. HuttonThere is no charge for any treatment given in a hospital accident and emergency department regardless of the personal circumstances of the patient. Patients who are not normally resident in the United Kingdom may be charged for any other treatment given by an NHS trust or primary care trust if they, or the treatment they are being given, are not specifically exempt from charges under the terms of the National Health Service (Charges to Overseas Visitors) Regulations 1989, as amended. Copies of these regulations are available in the Library.
The regulations place an obligation on health authorities, NHS trusts and primary care trusts to determine if a patient should be charged for their hospital treatment and, if so, to make and recover a charge for that treatment.
There is no separately identifiable record held centrally of the amounts recovered from charge-liable overseas patients or the amount outstanding from them at any one time.
There is no charge for any treatment which a general medical practitioner regards as emergency or immediately necessary, regardless of the personal circumstances of the patient. General medical and dental practitioners have discretion to accept or reject any patient, whether ordinarily resident in the United Kingdom or not, for NHS treatment subject, in the case of dentistry, to the same charges as other UK residents. They are advised however to offer private treatment if it appears that a patient has come to the UK specifically to obtain treatment. Guidance on the eligibility of overseas patients to free primary care has been placed in the Library.
Patients who are entitled to NHS hospital treatment or who have been accepted as NHS patients by a general practitioner or dentist are entitled to prescriptions on the same basis as other UK residents.