Letter to Home Secretary and Secretary of State for Health and Social Care calling for suspension of NHS Charging Regulations
With the BMA and royal medical colleges, we asked the Home Secretary and the Secretary of State for Health to suspend the NHS Charging Regulations.
The regulations are dangerous, and undermine efforts to stop the spread of COVID19 because during a pandemic it is critical that everyone is included in nationwide public health measures and can access health services. This includes refugees and migrants.
The Charging Regulations obstruct the delivery of healthcare and prevent patients, including those seeking asylum, from coming forward to NHS services.
The government has introduced an exemption for #COVID-19 but it does not go far enough – patients with pre-existing conditions still charged for treatment. The exemption also fails to protect NHS staff time and resources – which must now focus on providing patient care above all else.
Suspending the charging regulations is a necessary step in the fight against COVID-19.
You can view a copy of this letter below.
