MIGRANTS FACE 150% CHARGE FOR NHS
People from outside the EU who seek help from the NHS are to be charged 150% of the cost, Ministers have announced.
The move is to be rolled out in a bid to deter so-called "health tourism".
Under the new plans plans, non-EU patients receiving a £100 procedure will be billed £150.
The Department of Health said that visitors and migrants can currently get free NHS care soon after they arrive in the UK, leaving the health service "open to abuse".
It is now asking the NHS to "clamp down" by identifying these patients more effectively so costs can be recovered.
NHS Trusts that fail to identify and bill "chargeable" patients could face financial sanctions, the Department said.
The move forms part of an extension of the NHS charging regime in England intended to deter so-called "health tourism" while recouping up to £500 million a year for the taxpayer.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: "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 frontline are working very hard."
